Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Prologue:

Orario, the Center of the world, the city of legends where dreams came true, and heroes had ballads written in their honour. On a particular night, a bard who wrote these ballads wandered into the city. This was not news in itself; bards, minstrels, performers, and troubadours were always coming in and out of Orario. Some were part of musical Familias, while others were independent, not looking to be tied down. Our intrepid troubadour was the latter kind of performer; this was not for lack of trying, though. He often tried to join a famous familia based on his music, but he was always rejected. He tried his best, though, and that's what really counted.

Tonight though, he was not looking to join a Familia but to study one. The young human bard, who had hair the shade of oak and a complexion to rival an elf, was in the great city to research his newest subjects. It would soon be a year to the day of what people called "The Lover's Quarrel," and the city was on edge. The bard, named Dixen, knew that this was when people would be telling stories about what he wanted to write.

He searched far and wide for the pub he had heard of from the stories. The one where people decided not to fight out of fear. The pub with food with outrageous prices and beautiful, seductive women. Eventually, after asking a couple of questions, he found it. The Hostess of Fertility was bright and cheery, as all great establishments should be. He heard laughter and cheer. Before he had put one foot on the step, he was yanked inside.

"Nyan! What are you doing just standing there, pretty boy?" asked a catgirl with jet black hair.

"Hey, dummy kitty! He's got a big case on his back! I'm detecting that he plays an inyantrument!" replied another cat girl with brown hair.

"That's enough, you dumb cats! We don't have time tonight for your stupidity!" Like that, a human girl grabbed them by the collar and dragged them back inside. The human continued, "Hey Helun, carry these trays to Loki's table, please!"

A ponytail of grey hair swished as a girl fumbled with the many trays she was already carrying, "Luniore! I said to call me Syr! Come on, pleeeeaaassseee!"

All four must be waitresses, not just because they were carrying food, but only waitresses would wear such cute uniforms! Dixen could not get enough of the alluring legs hidden beneath the tights of these beautiful women. Not to mention the short length of their aprons and dresses. Whoever had designed these outfits had an eye for what people wanted. He was so entranced by the uniforms that he hadn't taken another step inside. So, it was no surprise when he was pushed inside. Since the culprit was an adventurer, it was also no surprise that he rocketed forward and crashed into a table, spilling beer and food.

"Really, you dumb wolf! You couldn't have been just a little bit more careful!" cried out a feminine voice. Dixen was lifted from the table and was face to…well, chest…with an incredible bust. He lifted his head to be met with the gaze of a beautiful amazon with long braided hair.

"Hey, hey, sorry about that, mister! Our dumb wolf didn't mean anything, promise!" He was set back on his feet by what must be the sister of one who had lifted him from the table. Maybe she was the younger sister? She was certainly a lot less developed than the other.

"Not my fault that the trash was just standing there!"

A silver-haired wolfman sauntered up to the table. The wolf clicked his teeth while he looked down at Dixen. Meanwhile, the bard got a good look at the rest of the table. There were two elves, one with jade green hair, the other obviously still not much older than a child. There was a large dwarf with a large beard, but what dwarf didn't have a beard?

Sitting next to them was what Dixen first thought was a child but was actually a blonde prum. He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. The last two caught Dixen's eye, though. One was obviously a goddess, with crimson hair and slanted eyes. The last was a young doll-like woman with blonde hair and golden eyes. She seemed utterly disinterested in her surroundings.

As the rest of the table jumped on the werewolf, bar the doll, the prum walked over to apologize. Dixen returned the apology, and then the prum held out his hand.

"My name is Finn Diemme; it is a pleasure to meet you," said Finn, holding out a tiny prum hand.

"Dixen Trebule, please don't call me Dix," and then the lightbulb clicked, "Wait, the Finn Diemme? The Braver, captain of the Loki Familia? The greatest strategist in the world?"

Finn nodded, "That's correct. Anything I can do to make up for our adventurers' behaviour? Perhaps I can buy you a drink?"

"Actually, if you are who I think you are, and if they are to," Dixen waved his hand to the rest of the table, "Perhaps I should be buying you the drink."

"Ha, ha! I'll never say no to a free drink, lad!" said the dwarf. Dixen figured he was probably the famous Elgarm, Gareth.

Dixen nodded, motioned for a round from a passing waitress, and sat down. Dixen could feel his legs knocking against the table. These were the people he needed!

As drinks appeared and coins were exchanged, everyone settled in. Most eyed Dixen with varying levels of curiosity. The only one not paying attention was the sword princess, Ais Wallenstein.

"So, I appreciate the drink, but to get to the point…what do you want with my children?" asked Loki, her eyes much too piercing.

"Information."

"What are you some kind of spy?" asked Tione, "If you're looking for anything on the captain, I'll gut you!"

Dixen could feel the heat of her gaze. Before he could answer, the jade elf spoke up. She must be the Nine Hells, Riveria.

"He's a musician," she said, giving a soft kick to his lute case, "No offence, sir, but if you're here to try and write another song about us, please stop. You won't be getting anything from any of us."

The table grew suddenly disinterested by the traveller. Most ignored him, hoping he would go away on his own. Dixen regained their attention by shaking his head and waving his arms.

"Not at all! I was hoping you could tell me about some other adventurers you might know!"

Now it was Finn's turn to respond, his lips curling into a half-smile, "Perhaps, it depends on the adventurer and familia, you know? We're not gonna sell out our friends."

Dixen looked around to make sure no one was listening before leaning in to whisper. The rest of the Loki Familia executives followed suit.

"I was hoping you could tell me about Hestia Familia."

Dixen was not used to Orario yet. Many people in the city were seasoned adventurers with enhanced senses. That meant that as soon as the name Hestia left his lips, the whole bar heard it. Everyone stopped talking, and most people were staring at Loki's table. Dixen didn't notice any of that, though. He was too busy dying from fear. The Sword Princess heard something she found fascinating and was staring a hole into the bard's head. She spoke for the first time that night.

"Why?"

A single small word that might have been shouted for all Dixen cared. He looked for backup, but Finn just jerked his head and said, "Answer Ais's question Dix."

Dixen felt himself shrink into his seat, "Well…I was writing a whole series of songs and ballads about them, and when I met them a month back, they said if I really wanted to know…I should come here. I knew they were sarcastic, but I just thought…" He trailed off as the silence continued. The sword princess had narrowed her eyes, but the first to speak was the other Amazon, Tiona.

"Hey, hey, you saw Mister Argonaut! How was he doing?" She was smiling, of course, before Tione bonked her on the head.

"Shut it, you idiot," she turned to the rest of the bar, "And you lot can mind your own business."

The patrons returned to their drinks, but the waitresses were not so easily deterred. Among the newest members of Hestia Familia was a certain blonde elven warrior. She had left after the mess of 'The Lovers Quarrel' to find her Goddess. Her goal was to help the boy she loved, and she needed to find her Goddess to do that. That did not mean that her second family wasn't worried about her. Before the collected waitresses could voice their displeasure, the one voice that no one ignored in this bar spoke up.

"Loki, I'm gonna hear about what that boy has to say, or your familia isn't ever coming back, you understand me?"

Loki waved her off and nodded, all the while she was dragging Dixen off by the collar of his jacket. As Loki Familia walked outside, Loki gestured for Bete.

"Get Phai-Phai will you, Bete? I have a feeling she's gonna want to hear about this."

Bete tsk-ed, his teeth, grunted a fine and started running off to the Hephaistos Familia home. The rest of Loki Familia marched off. Dixen realized resistance was futile when the Sword Princess grabbed her sword after he scratched his nose. Tiona kept asking him questions, but he was told to ignore her by the other scary twin.

When they had finally reached their home, Bete had already returned. Hephaistos was standing there, hand on her hip and her one good eye focused on the poor bard swept up in circumstances beyond his control. Her captain, Tsubaki, stood next to her.

"We're going to be waiting on a couple more," Hephaistos said, "I've sent for Miach and Take. And that girl from the guild."

Loki grunted in acceptance before telling the guards to let up the other visitors. The group climbed up the Twilight Manor towers, all the way to Loki's personal office. Everyone took up seats on couches and chairs, and Loki sat on the desk. Dixen was brought to his knees on the floor and was held there by Tione. Tsubaki leaned forward.

"So, bard, how's my adorably annoying junior brat doing?" she asked.

Before Dixen could answer, Hephaistos spoke up.

"Don't answer her. Tsubaki, I'm only gonna want to hear all of this once. Leave the child alone and wait for everyone else."

After that, the room sat in awkward silence for ten minutes. Ten minutes of agonizing boredom almost caused Tiona to break a wall. Finally, they got a knock on the door. Their guests were coming up. They could hear Raul freaking out outside as he let their guests up and inside. Finally, the door was thrown open, and Takemikazuchi marched in, followed by Ouka, Chigusa, Miach, Nahza, and Eina. Loki took note of all the people listening.

"Where is she?"

Funny enough, the war god was on the warpath. Though he was barefoot, and his clothes were obviously threadbare, none could deny the intense aura he gave off. Take located the young bard on the floor quickly and quickly grabbed him by the collar.

"My daughter, how is she?" He demanded. At Dixen's confused face, he continued, "Mikoto, the samurai, is she ok?"

Dixen almost broke his neck with how fast he nodded. As the blood drained from the bard's face, Miach grabbed Take by the shoulder. The war god started to breathe slowly and lean away. Miach took his turn to give a gentle smile to the assembled room, which happened to be quite crowded now.

"I believe we are all here for the same reason. People we know and care about went missing, and now we know about someone who knows about them. I believe the only thing for us to do is listen now to his story, yes?" Miach spoke to the whole room. When the room gave words of assent, Dixen swallowed, his throat bobbing, before he started his story.

"Well, I was wandering in the north, hoping to catch a story about the Dragon Valley, when I stopped in a small town for the night. Towns like this don't often have blacksmiths, right? So, when I heard the sound of a hammer pounding, I was curious, to say the least," that part of the story got a smile from the two blacksmiths in the room, "While searching, I came across the most beautiful renard girl carrying a bag of food. I asked her about the hammer, and she smiled and told me that it was her Familia." Takemikazuchi Familia shared warm grins.

"She led me to the outskirts of town where a small Familia was gathered around some covered carts," Dixen paused as Finn raised his hand. Dixen nodded.

"How many were there, including the Renard?" asked the prum captain.

"There was the goddess, five humans, a prum, an elf, a half-elf, and the renard," Dixen replied. Everyone did a mental tally. They noticed that there were three more members than there were a year ago. That was interesting…

"What happened next?" asked Miach. There would be time to focus on the recruits later. It was unfair to say, but the focus needed to be on the people they knew. They needed to understand how their friends were doing.

"Well, they seemed like an interesting group, so I asked them about who they were, and then I asked them what they had been up to. They told me about Orario, their adventures in the city, why they left," Dixen continued. He stopped when everyone else in the room flinched. Some looked away, some grit their teeth, and some seemed terribly sad. It was apparent that whatever had happened had affected them all deeply. Dixen decided that it was best not to ask questions about it.

"Next, I tried asking them about what they were doing in a small town in the middle of nowhere, but they just said that they've been on an adventure." Again, small smiles on everyone's faces, "after that, I asked them for more stories, but they told me to come here. They kept insisting that they didn't have any more stories that they could tell. They just said to look for Loki and Hephaistos. They told me to look for the Hostess of Fertility. I did what they told me, and now, here I am. I gotta say, though, they're just like the songs make them out to be," Dixen finished, a wistful look on his face.

Tiona tilted her head, "Songs, what songs?"

Dixen looked around the room, "You mean you haven't heard the songs yet?"

The room shook their heads.

"Ever Burning Love?"

Tsubaki laughed, Hephaistos blushed, and the rest of the room shook their heads.

"Ballad of the Fox and Crow?"

More head shakes.

"The Tale of the Tiny Tyrant?"

That was a negative from the room.

"The Sword of Justice?"

No one had heard of it.

"A Beautiful Hearth?"

That one made Loki growl out a no.

"The Ruby Ghost? Lost Love of a Banshee? Bouncing Bunny's Dream of a Princess?"

They hadn't heard of any of those songs. Although those last three titles were definitely telling on who the songs were about. In fact, every song was clear on its subject. If these songs told them anything about what had happened, they wanted to hear them.

Eina spoke up for the first time that night, "Were there any others?"

"Songs? A collection of them, but those were the most famous. I mean there's, Enchanting Seductress and Lost Knife…wait! There was one other famous song. People are saying that it's going to be the new epic," Dixen got lost in thought. Before anyone could get him talking, he started humming. Then he started singing.

"Hark, follow the well-worn tracks,

Seek out when in need of aid,

Spot the large, overstuffed packs,

They require nothing paid.

Wandering familia,

Strength of mind and strength of heart,

Hestia Familia,

Heroes who help from the start."

Dixen blushed when he caught everyone staring at him, "Obviously, it needs some work…but it really starts to pick up through the middle. Apparently, the Familias of the muses is hard at work refining it."

"Who wrote it?" asked Eina.

"No one knows; some people say it just sort started coming together one day when a crowd of adventurers got really drunk at a bar," replied Dixen.

That got some snickers from the cynically minded members of the crowd. When it died down, Miach spoke up, asking the question on many people's minds.

"Would you mind singing some of them for us?" he asked.

Dixen nodded, and the next hours passed pleasantly. Some songs made them laugh; some made them cry. A certain goddess of the forge definitely started blushing at one point. The songs ranged from drinking songs about a fox and a crow to marching songs about a prum to ballads about a smith longing for a lost love. It was a good night, where people laughed more than they had for many months before. Eventually, Dixen's throat grew sore, and he went to find an inn to stay at. After he left, the assembled Familias sat together. There was much to discuss.

"They're still out there then…" Takemikazuchi started.

"Yes, my Lord, they are, and they sound healthy too," added Chigusa. Ouka nodded, the tension he had been carrying for months easing from his shoulders.

"Not only healthy but stronger and with more allies. I'm curious as to who they could have recruited…" added Finn.

"It was a half-elf, a far-eastern boy, and a far-eastern girl, right?" asked Lefiya.

Riveria nodded. They were all quiet for a while. The only one who hadn't spoken all evening, besides one word, was the Sword Princess. Her mind had been on a downward slant since the fateful events of a year ago. She still remembered the look of betrayal on Bell's face when she turned away from him. Nothing could make her feel better; She had been so worried and depressed. The rest of the Familia had picked up on it, with the higher-ups worrying about her mental state.

Meanwhile, her closest friends had been knocking their heads together for weeks on what to do about it. Finally, though, she felt something stir inside of her. Her bunny was alive and well, and hopefully, he'd be coming home soon…

"Well, that's enough of that. Not like speculation will do us any good!" declared Tsubaki. She rose from her chair, "If they come home, they do, nothing we can do about it, except be ready to welcome them home."

Hephaistos nodded with her captain, rising from her chair. The two departed, followed by Miach Familia. Nahza waved goodbye with a droopy grin and a half-swish of her tail.

Ouka reminded his God of his early morning shift tomorrow. Takemikazuchi despaired then for all the potato puffs he would have to sell. He nodded to Loki before leaving with his familia.

All that left was Loki Familia and the guild receptionist. Eina had been quiet since hearing of Bell's whereabouts. Part of her was relieved that he was still alive, another part missed him terribly, and a third part was so unbelievably angry that he hadn't come back yet! As these parts of her subconscious warred within her, she was unaware of Lady Riveria helping her to her feet. She registered in a vague way that Lady Riveria was going to escort her home. Having Lady Riveria do anything to help her would be taboo under normal circumstances, but these were obviously no ordinary circumstances. Stupid Bell and his stupid adventures! He was supposed to know better! Adventurers don't adventure!

After she had left, the last of Loki Familia gathered around. They wanted to talk about what they had heard, but no one knew what to say. Finally, Tiona decided that silence was dull and painful. It is better to speak now and sound stupid because…well, everybody already thought that anyway, so who cares?

"I gotta say, I'm relieved Mr. Argonaut is ok! I mean, I do still feel pretty bad about what happened," she trailed off, unaware of how to continue.

"We couldn't have intervened, and you know it! We gotta protect our familia first and foremost, right Captain?" Argued Tione.

Bete followed with a tsk, "We can say that all we want. We didn't step in because we were afraid of showing everyone how weak we were. Those Xenos things were stronger than us that day. The only Familia weaker than us was Hermes Familia."

Tione whipped her head to the werewolf, "You wanna call the Captain weak again, wolf-boy?"

"Quiet, you two," rumbled the voice of Gareth, "What do you say, Finn? How's that thumb of yours doing?"

Finn had spent the last hour staring at this thumb. He didn't look up as he answered, "It's been trembling ever since we met that bard. Whatever happens next…I think it starts with Hestia Familia coming home."

"Do you really think so, Finn?"

Everyone was shocked. There was more emotion in Ais's voice than there had been for a year. There was sadness, some guilt, and maybe just a little bit of desperation mixed in.

Finn nodded, "If they do, though, I want you to hold off, Ais. We need to get the lay of the land first," he could feel Ais glaring at him, "I want to help Bell Cranel to, but I want to do it right. I don't want any surprise favours called in."

There it was…the elephant in the room. The younger members were all shocked that Finn had even brought it up. Ais frowned; her lip was…trembling? That never happened! She excused herself to her room without another word.

"Oi, Finn! That was a little harsh," asked Tiona.

Gareth shook his head, "No two ways about it, Lass. Ais made a grave mistake. Owing Freya a favour, that's an act of stupidity yet matched, and Ais is gonna have to learn to live with the consequences and the guilt."

"Ok!"

Loki clapped her hands together, "I think it's time for bed, you lot! Before you go, Lefiya, I want you to head to the Hostess of Fertility and tell Mamma about what happened. Oh! Also!" Loki turned to her window, "You can tell your boss the shows over!"

There was an eep from outside and the trees rustled. The executives dashed to jump out the window, but Loki called them off.

"It's just Hermes's kids. No need to worry; I knew they were there the whole time. They didn't hear anything important. Besides, that rat bastard would have heard it later anyway. Listen up, you lot, it's like Tsubaki said! There's nothing to be done, for now, so head off to snooze land! I'll come and tuck you, ladies, in later!"

With that, the Loki Familia retired for the night.

Chapter Text

The road to Orario was a well-worn one. Ruts had formed from decades of wagons rolling along its dirt paths, wildflowers flourished along the side, and it was such a busy road that it was known as the safest in the world. The day after an aspiring bard found his way inside the center of the world, two covered wagons were making their way home. At least, they were trying to.

"And here, Lily thought that Master Welf was skilled enough to fix a broken axle!"

The stern voice that said this belonged to a decidedly unintimidating prum. She had traded in her old ratty clothes a long time ago. Now, she wore form-fitting burgundy pants, a white blouse with the sleeves rolled up, and black suede boots. The only clothing she had kept from the previous year was her supporter gloves. Even her hood had been replaced with a much sturdier and weather-proof upgrade; for all that, Liliruca Arde still had puffy cheeks, unruly hair, and a mischievous face.

"You wanna come underneath and give a try then? If not, then stuff it Lil' Bit, or else I'll get you to Orario the hard way!"

The man that spoke shimmied out from underneath, and by the gods, what a man he was! The previous year had been good to Welf Crozzo. Long hours perfecting his craft had sculpted his body to resemble a marble statue. A black vest replaced his standard overshirt; this clothing highlighted his bulging biceps. However, the real difference was in his hair. Right now, it was tied up in a bun atop his head. If untied, his hair would fall to the small of his back. His face was also sporting a short beard and mustache combo. If a certain goddess of the forge were here, she would faint!

"Lady Lilly, Sir Welf! Please do not fight! We are so close to home!"

Mikoto was playing the peacemaker, of course. Her year away had changed her demeanour; though she was still rigid and formal, there was a shift in the way she held herself. Her whole body was poised, and she bore nervous energy. She was ready to fight. Her hair had grown, and in response, she had braided it down her back while still retaining her signature loops. She also sported a pair of pants now, but hers were obviously made with combat in mind, thick and reinforced. The more perceptive adventurer would notice the knives that hung next to her sword, as well as the light armour plating she wore across her chest.

As Mikoto tried to calm her companions down, one of her oldest and dearest friends came to her aid. She was dressed in the white robes of a priest, with her gorgeous blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. Her movements were assured and confident, even if her tone didn't match.

"Please, there must be a better way to settle this surely! Do we really have to fight when we have almost finished our journey!"

Haruhime almost hit her familia with the staff she carried across her back. Her white ensemble was now collecting dust from the road.

"That's enough."

One statement from their vice-captain was all it took to stop this disgraceful performance. Ryuu Leon was undoubtedly a sight to be reckoned with. Her stern demeanour was enhanced by the elven robes and armour she wore, all tinted a familiar forest green. She wore a pair of gauntlets with embossed leaf designs. Her thigh-high boots remained, but they had been reinforced with boiled leather. She wore a white tunic with a deep green chest plate over the top. Her new wooden sword hung at her hip. To anyone who had known her only in passing, it would look like nothing had changed. However, those who knew her would notice that her shoulders were not as hackled, and though she tried hard to hide it, a small smile graced her features.

The others were quick to apologize. Welf returned to his job repairing the axle, while Ryuu and Mikoto decided to lift the cart to give him some more space. The broken axle was inconvenient for many reasons, but there was one opportunity it created. The delay gave the Goddess and Captain of the Familia time to brief their newest members.

"Hey, hey! Sorry to ask again, but who are our allies?"

Seated in the back of the second wagon were Bell Cranel, Goddess Hestia, two humans from the Far East, and a half-elf. It was the girl from the Far East who spoke. Her hair was as black as ink, her skin as pale as porcelain. However, the most beautiful thing about her was her eyes. They were a sharp gold colour that contrasted with the rest of her features. Indeed, she was a beauty to rival the sword princess. She wore a carefree smile, a white lily in her hair, and homespun purple clothes. Her armour had been packed away due to the heat.

"Milady, surely you have been paying attention?"

"Ha! That one paying attention? Fat chance!"

The two seated to either side of the exquisite beauty soon devolved into bickering. One was a boy from the Far East, garbed in the clothing of a shinobi. His limbs were covered, but his hood was down, showing his shoulder-length black hair. His face screamed stern.

The other had the dull pointed ears of a half-elf poking out the sides of his snug hat, which hid his hair. His eyes were a piercing green, the colour of spring grass in growth. He wore glasses and robes indicative of a mage. The staff at his side complemented this. He was deceptively relaxed.

"Ura, Elwin! That's enough, you two! As your Goddess, I declare that there shall be no more bickering!" Declared the little Goddess Hestia.

Both Urashima Taro and Elwin Ruffrot rolled their eyes, but it was done with fondness. They had only been part of this Familia for half a year, but they had grown accustomed to the antics of their Goddess quick enough.

Said Goddess was wearing a simple white sundress with an aqua blue shawl. Her favourite ribbons that would never be replaced still kept her hair tied and the ribbon around her chest was still connected. She had lost her shoes at some point, but she didn't mind. It just meant that she could feel the ground better! Besides, all the walking she did caused calluses to form, matching the ones on her hands from her work. The pain had receded a long time ago. Yes, Hestia had well and truly come into her own as a Goddess. She was as bright and bubbly as ever, but she seemed more comfortable as well. Everything about her seemed to shine.

"Bell, you answer Otohime's question while I have a chat with these two!"

With that, Hestia dragged her quarrelling familia members outside. This left Otohime with the boy named Bell Cranel. He still had a boyish grin, an endearing face, and a head that begged to be patted, but his eyes held a deep betrayal. That said, he had grown in a year. His clothes, which were once rags, had been replaced with a tight, black, collared shirt, pants you could walk forever in, and brown boots to match the pants. The Hestia Knife, which would never be replaced, hung at his back, but that was the only weapon he carried.

He had rolled his sleeves up to help out, but he was now stuck explaining to Otohime how the relationships between Familias in Orario worked. She required repeat answers and long, simple explanations. Was this how he was with Eina? He would have to apologize. The thought made him smile; he had missed the advisor who had become like an older sister. He was stunned out of his reverie by a hand covering his.

"You are excited, yes?" asked Otohime, her expression gentle.

Bell nodded, "Excited, but also nervous. I can't even begin to guess how we'll be received. We've been gone so long."

Otohime drew her hand away, sitting back on her knees, "That is understandable. However, from the stories you all have told, I'm sure there will at least be some who will welcome you back."

Otohime blushed as she started playing with her hair, "If anything, I feel I as if I should be nervous."

Bell tilted his head, asking the silent question.

Otohime continued to play with her hair, tying small braids as she spoke, "Your friends are great heroes and adventurers, no? In response, what am I but a disgraced lady from a tyrannical empire?"

Over the last year, Bell felt as if he had grown as a captain. There was much he was prepared for, but how should he respond in the face of such a confession? He stammered out answers for a while before Otohime let out a laugh that was as rich as honey.

"I'm sorry! That is not a question that needs to be dealt with today. No need to fret over things out of my control, right? The die has been cast, and all that's left is to watch them fall and drink when we know the results!"

With a wink as dangerous as any monster, she hopped outside to stretch her limbs before turning back to Bell, "Besides, one must make hay while the sun still shines!" She left to watch Hestia scold Urashima and Elwin.

It was soon afterwards that Welf fixed the first wagon. He sat with Lily in the front, filling the air with the familiar sound of their bickering. Haruhime napped in the back, leaning her head on Mikoto's shoulder, while Mikoto stroked her hair absentmindedly. Urashima sat with Hestia at the front of the second wagon. Otohime kept popping her head out to interject into their conversation before returning to calm a panicked Elwin with Ryuu.

Bell sat at the back, dangling his legs. Apparently, it was a day for memories because the sky reminded him of the first day when he originally came to Orario. It was a pleasant ride until they reached the gates. The sudden stop jolted him from his memories and the cart. He fell face first and ate dirt. He might be a level five, but he was also still a clumsy teenage boy. As he picked himself out of the earth, he heard Lily arguing with the Ganesha guards at the gate.

"Lily is telling you! We are the Hestia Familia returning from our excused trip! What more proof do you want! Would you like Lily to strip down and show her falna!" Lily was definitely worked up now.

"Ha! I'd have to pay you first, wouldn't I?" replied the guard.

Lily was quickly restrained before she could jump at him.

"Hey there, little Miss Supporter, leave it to the Goddess, why don't ya?" said Hestia, strolling on up to the gate. She placed her feet shoulder-width apart, cocked her hands to her hips and said, "I am the Goddess Hestia, and I command that you open this gate, for we have returned home!"

There was a silence of three beats before the guards broke down laughing. One paused to point his finger at the goddess, "What kind of shrimp would be the goddess of any Familia?"

Now Ryuu stepped forward, "Let us in, or we break in."

She brandished her new wooden sword while Urashima and Mikoto took up positions to either side of her.

That got the guard's attention as the violent aura of these three rolled off in waves. They did, in fact, just insult their Goddess, Hestia. That being said, there was one member whose wrath was even more incredible.

"What did you say about my Goddess?" asked Bell.

Bell was not easily angered, but insulting his Familia, especially the Goddess that took him in, was a quick way to do it. Knife in hand, the guards, nearly tripped over themselves, backing away. Then one of them pointed at Bell's hair, his jaw-dropping.

"White hair and rubellite eyes! He's the Rabbit Foot!" stammered out the guard. He then swung his gaze to the rest of the party, "Which means that they're really Hestia Familia!"

It took ten seconds for the gates to open and for wagons to be waved through. They weren't even inspected as an apology. As they trundled down one of the main boulevards of Orario, the whispers started to pick up.

People began to notice the wagons, and then they saw the people driving them. People remembered the itty-bitty goddess with the massive chest, and they remembered that a prum girl and a Crozzo were among her followers. Then they saw the back of the carriage, and shit got crazy.

"It's Rabbit Foot!"

The people of Orario flocked to their one-time hero. Bell was ducking his head at the attention, shuffling back to hide in the wagon. Eventually, they turned down enough streets to find a mansion in sight. The Hearthfire Manor stood where they had left it, beckoning them home. Haruhime and Mikoto scrambled to the front of the wagon, their hearts keening at the sight of their home after a long year away. They came to the gates, parked their wagons, and unloaded their luggage to the front lawn. They had gathered quite the crowd around them, but they ignored that. All of them, except their new mage, who spent a lot of time looking over his shoulder, searched the crowd.

"That's enough, you lot. Get moving, hup hup, let's go!"

The Little Goddess wasn't much good for lifting heavy boxes, so instead, she worked on crowd control. Eventually, people began leaving, the threat of the Goddess's wrath enough to move them. It helped that she had the proper demeanour of a Goddess now, and that one look was all it took to make the people move. After finally parking the wagons on the grass and stacking the boxes outside, the returning heroes took a second to sit on the grass. They only had a second, though, then their smith was tackled.

"Welfy, you little shit! How's my beloved junior doing! Did you finally, get a bit better?"

Tsubaki had trapped Welf in a headlock and was giving his head a hard ruffle. While she was pestering him with questions, she waved to the rest of the familia.

"Oi, let go, you damned cyclops!"

"What's this! Look at how long your hair is! And you grew a beard and muscles! Oh, what a manly little boy, you must think you are! Just wait till the Goddess gets a look at you!"

Tsubaki pointed at the gate, and Hephaistos was strolling up the path. Hestia had popped to her feet to attack her best friend with a hug. Three sets of tears ran down both Goddesses' faces at their reunion. Although a year was but a moment for the Goddesses, it is still challenging to spend without your closest friend. Eventually, they broke apart, and Hephaistos went to greet the rest of the Familia. Then she froze at the sight of her favourite smith. Welf devolved into a stammering mess, and Tsubaki was left hooting and hollering, rolling on the grass.

"Well, I see the rumours are true," spoke the calm voice of Miach. In all the confusion, his Familia and Takemikazuchi's had snuck up on them. Mikoto and Haruhime were on their feet in an instant, tackling Chigusa and the rest. No time to focus there, though, because soon enough, Ryuu was running in the opposite direction, pursued by a couple of stupid cats and a slightly less foolish human.

"Come here, nyan! Hug us, you damned prude elf!"

The Hostess of Fertility's waitresses had left work early and were now sprinting around the yard trying to catch their sister in a hug.

"Get away from me!"

Said sister was not having it, though. Eventually, the waitresses were able to split up and use numbers to their advantage. They cornered the elf and dogpiled on her, wrapping her in a tight hug. They were all laughing and crying, even the elf. It almost helped them forget that one was missing. Back with the slightly more ordinary people, a daughter was reuniting with her father, who refused to let her go.

"Lord Takemikazuchi, please!" Mikoto was a red mess as she tried to escape the grip of her former God. The struggle was that she could not hurt him either. The rest of the gathered Familias laughed at the sight while they greeted each other. Nahza patted Bell's head, commenting on his growth, Daphne and Lily were chatting and trading jabs with Cassandra hovering nearby. Ouka and Welf were engaged in manly conversation, and Haruhime was practically dancing with Chigusa. The Gods and Goddesses stood a little bit apart, catching up. Then the amazon made her usual loud appearance.

"Bell Cranel!"

Aisha Belka sauntered her way onto the grass, grabbed Bell, and pulled him into her chest.

"You've grown little rabbit! Look at you all big and strong; I could just eat you up."

Aisha made eye contact, and Bell felt a shiver down his spine as she licked her lips. Before this moment could get any lewder, a voice squeaked out.

"Miss Aisha!"

Aisha dropped Bell and whirled to find her little sister blushing and trembling. Her grin changed from predatory to affectionate as she walked up to the renard girl and touched foreheads with her.

"Ah, you've grown to you dumb little fox."

The moment was too much for the sensitive Haruhime, who broke down, bawling her eyes out.

Suffice to say, everyone cried at some point or another, even if Welf and Ouka would deny it. Eventually, the party was moved inside, and the other Familias helped move the Hestia Familia's boxes inside. Then Mikoto, Chigusa, and Haruhime turned to the kitchens to prepare dinner. The tables were set, alcohol was poured, and merriment was had.

"Huh? Mr. Dixen's in the city?" said Lily.

Nahza had been in the middle of recounting the events of last night. Lily facepalmed when she heard that the dumb performer was staying in the city. That meant he had kept his promise and that they owed the same commitment to him. Damn it all to the Goddess.

"So, what kind of adventures did you all get up to, nyan?" asked Chloe.

"And who are these kittens?" asked Anya.

Elwin, Urashima, and Otohime had mostly stuck to themselves and the rest of their Familia. Now that they were suddenly put on the spot, they didn't know what to say. Or Elwin and Urashima didn't know what to say…

"Hello, my name is Otohime Nakamura; it's a pleasure to meet you!"

Otohime's smile was almost too bright. It was easy to see how nervous she was, but everyone smiled in response. Then, Take's mouth opened, his head tilted, and his eyes bugged out.

"Nakamura? As in, the Nakamura Imperial Family of the east? The familia of Lady Amaterasu? That Nakamura?" he asked in astonishment.

Otohime's smiled faltered for a second, then resumed in a more brittle form. Then she said, "Yes, that Nakamura. I am the former 3rd Princess of Nakamura, but not to worry! I am now just an adventurer looking to live an adventurer's life! Please give me a chance!" Otohime bowed to the gathered familia members.

"Oh, she is just too adorable," said Daphne in response. The others gave similar answers, welcoming the eastern princess. Otohime was overjoyed to see the reactions from the friends of her Familia.

Urashima stepped up next. He said, "My name is Urashima Taro; it is an honour to meet you all. I served as Lady Otohime's bodyguard since she was a child, and I will continue to do so." Then he looked to Hestia and Bell, "that being said, I hope to become valuable to my new companions." Urashima bowed to the others.

Nahza hummed. From what she had seen that evening, she understood what was going on, but that wasn't her business. The more socially inclined had noticed something as well, while others, namely Miach and Takemikizuchi, were as clueless as ever…typical men.

Finally, Elwin stepped up. He had relaxed throughout the party and was now ready to start meeting people…as long they weren't her.

"My name is Elwin Ruffrot; obviously, I'm a half-elf and a mage. Um, it's a pleasure to meet you all. Thanks for giving me a chance, and I hope to work with you all soon," he said, nodding his head deferentially.

The rest snorted at his introduction; oh yes, he was quite the mage. He already had the attitude of an adventurer, that's for sure.

"What's your magic?" asked Cassandra.

Elwin shook his head, "Sorry, but that's private. I will say that it's versatile, and with it, I'll do everything I can to help out!"

Hestia nodded before adding, "I know his magic, and let me tell you; it's crazy cool!"

"Sir Elwin will most definitely be useful!" Mikoto added.

The rest of the Hestia Familia gave sounds of affirmation.

"Ok, so the new members are cool, but what about your stories?" asked Lunoire.

Hestia sighed, "I don't even know where to begin. Though I can say that we found Astrea, and Ryuu was able to officially join the Familia!"

There were several whoops from everyone, and Ryuu started to blush.

"Which also means that we have two level fives in our Familia!"

An even larger number of whoops rang out in celebration. Aisha turned to the rest of the familia, including the new members.

"What about you lot? Level ups, for any of you? Were any of you newbies members of another familia before?"

Elwin nodded, "I was a member of Hecate Familia. Lady Hecate let me join Hestia…for reasons. I'm a level three."

"As am I. As a member of the household that guarded the Nakamura's, I was a direct member of Lady Amaterasu's Familia before I left," Added Urashima.

"It goes without saying, but I was also a member of Lady Amaterasu's Familia, then I abdicated the throne to prevent civil war and joined Hestia Familia with Urashima. I am a level four," finished Otohime.

"I think we're gonna have to put aside the fact that you…abdicated the throne…and prevented a civil war; I think you gathered some strong members, boy. The real question is, did any of you level up?" Aisha repeated her question.

Almost all of Hestia Familia shook their heads in the negative. The only one who didn't was Haruhime, who blushed at the attention. She was quick to explain, "I gained my level up before we left. It was only during the year that we finally decided to grant it to me."

Aisha shook her head in disappointment, "Honestly, you lot need to get it together. Wasn't the whole idea of this trip of yours to get stronger? What are you going to do about that witch?"

"Hey! You try and gain falna out there! Monsters aren't worth shit!" exclaimed Welf, "Besides, we got stronger in other ways!"

Aisha tsked at the smith before replying, "What about fighting other people? Weren't there other adventurers out there? That's how those amazon twins got so strong."

"We are not killers."

Mikoto's words were final.

Lily spoke next, "Besides, Lily thought of a plan to keep Freya off our backs. For now, we will be relying on Goddess Hestia's relationship with Goddess Hephaistos and the fact that the Guild will be watching her to buy us some time, but Lily has a plan that she has spent the past year on!"

Bell stood before Aisha could continue arguing, "I trust Lily. We will do everything we can to protect this familia, and we will not run away again. I give my word."

Hestia giggled, "Look at you, acting all serious and official, Bell. I believe in my familia Miss Aisha. You know why? Because my familia is filled with heroes."

Standing together, the rest of the room was reminded that their friends were not the same people running scared from a year ago. No one was hesitant. Their convictions were firm; even the newest members stood together, ready for a fight they didn't ask for.

Take nodded and said, "I'm happy that you're all so ready. That said, there are opportunities for growth. Last year, right after you left, Ouranos and the Guild began a yearly tournament for adventurers. The prize for first place is an orb that provides a guaranteed level up. It's scheduled for the end of the year."

"HUHHH!?"

You leave for one year, and things go crazy.

Takemikazuchi nodded before continuing, "There's tournaments for adventurers from levels two to four. They have a doubles and a singles section. Each familia gets to send one member to each tournament. Rumour is that Fels makes the orbs with monster stones gathered by the Xenos."

"Why would the Xenos help us?" asked Welf, "Last I checked, adventurers still wanted them all dead. Especially after what Freya did to them…"

"Those creatures understand; they have to keep working. They have to be the bigger man, so to speak," replied Aisha, "I've been in contact with them as part of Hermes Familia. They say they need to get stronger and find a way to help you lot."

Bell stood in awe of his friends stuck below the earth. Even when Bell and his familia had caused them so much pain. Even when adventurers came and slaughtered them, they still wanted to come up top. They still wanted to be their friends.

Regarding the tournament, though, there were excited whispers from Hestia Familia. Theoretically, they could secure six orbs. Unfortunately, those dreams were quickly dashed by Hestia.

"Elwin, Otohime, I don't want you two competing. I don't want to reveal you two just yet. Same goes for you, Haruhime," she said, pulling her shawl tighter around her shoulders.

Haruhime dipped her head, "One as weak as I could not win anyway, Lady Hestia."

Lily pulled on Haruhime's tail, "Oi! No more talk like that! A tournament is just the wrong venue for your abilities!" Lily began pacing the room, whispering under her breath. She lost contact with the rest of the room.

"I think that means that the party's over. It's time for us to let them sleep," said Miach.

Everyone bid their goodbyes, the last to leave being Hephaistos.

"Just to let you know, everything you left behind is still here. We made sure to keep the place guarded while you were gone. Also, Hestia-"

"I'll be at work tomorrow! Bright and early!" said the beaming Hestia.

Hephaistos looked surprised for a second but then smiled at her friend. She turned to Welf, the heat rising in her cheeks, "Visit me soon, I want to hear about everything…" she said before scurrying outside.

Hestia Familia let out a collective sigh. They weren't used to all that commotion and people after travelling alone for so long. Haruhime busied herself cleaning up the kitchen, Welf went to check the forge, and Mikoto showed the new members where they could put their stuff. Lily was sitting while she muttered now. Hestia took one look at her, sighed, and started to check the house to see if their belongings really were just where they left them. Bell, finding he had nothing to do, began to bring boxes inside. Ryuu joined him. He was lost in his thoughts, bringing boxes into the foyer of the manor. The elf and the human worked in silence for a couple of minutes before Ryuu figured out what she wanted to say.

"You need to relax, Bell," said Ryuu, "You are the leader of this Familia. These are turbulent times, and the others look to you for their strength."

Bell flinched and then said, "I'm trying; it's just that there's just so much to worry about. There's Freya, and now this tournament. Me and you can't even participate, and what happens to the others? How do we help them?"

Ryuu shrugged before responding, "We train them, help them prepare, and when the tournament starts, we support them."

Bell sighed, "Sometimes I really think you should be leading this Familia."

Ryuu's response was immediate, "There is no one better for this Familia. Despite what happened, you are still kind. You still see the best in others. That's what we need right now."

She placed her hand on his chest, over his heart, and held there a moment. The two of them were bathed in the moonlight, finding comfort as they looked into each other's eyes. They started to smile, then noticed that they had been staring at each other for quite some time. They both turned a shade of crimson and broke eye contact. Ryuu brought her hand down and started bringing in the last of the boxes. Bell was alone for a moment. The quiet was broken when a familiar voice called out from the front gate.

"Bell!"

Bell turned to find Hermes grinning, with Asfi by his side pinching her nose. Bell frowned at the God, turned around, and walked back inside. He didn't see the God still smiling as he pulled down his hat.

"Ahhh, so you really have grown, my dear Bell…"

Hermes walked back into Orario, Asfi following behind him.

Bell went back inside and found the familia sitting around the table. Bell sat next to Mikoto, who handed him a cup of tea. He smiled and nodded his thanks before turning to Lily.

"So, Commander, anything you want to say?" asked Welf now that everyone was here.

"Lily has decided on what to do for the tournaments. Lily and Welf will take part in the doubles. We will mostly be relying on Welf's magic swords to take the win. We will start training tomorrow after making a report to the Guild. For the singles level two tournament, we are leaving it to you, Miss Mikoto. Your training this past year leaves you the most suited for the task. For the level three tournament, Lily must agree with Goddess Hestia; Elwin must sit out the tournament. Mister Urashima, you will enter the singles tournament for the level threes. I suggest you train with Master Bell. As for Lady Otohime, you must also sit out the tournament. We cannot risk you going wild for all the city to see."

After Lily's long speech, the rest of the familia gave various signs of acceptance. Otohime blushed as she nodded. Welf was rubbing his chin as he thought of how many magic swords he would have to craft. Urashima grunted and said nothing else, fully accepting his role. The only one that looked really nervous was the honourable samurai from the Far East.

"Lady Lily…though I am honoured by your faith in me, I do not know if I can do it…" said Mikoto, playing with her nails.

"You can, Mikoto. I shall help with your training, and so will Lunoire, Anya and Chloe. You will emerge victorious from this tournament a conquering level three," said Ryuu. Her eyes brooked no argument.

Haruhime nodded vigorously, "And I'm sure I can ask Miss Aisha to help you train as well."

Mikoto was shocked to hear her Familia's support and the faith they put in her. She bowed her head in gratitude. The rest of the familia voiced their encouragement before Bell turned to Hestia.

He said, "Hestia, we have a month and a half before this tournament. I want to spend the coming weeks training, but I also want to return to the Dungeon. Also, tomorrow we need to register Elwin, Urashima, and Otohime with the Guild," Bell smiled before continuing, "I should also say hi to Miss Eina. She'd probably be very cross with me if I didn't report in as soon as possible."

Hestia nodded and smiled, "I think that's the right thing to do, Bell. Also, ask that advisor lady of yours about this tournament. My intuition's telling me that there's more than meets the eye. I also think we need to find Dixen. We made him a promise, and we need to keep it."

Lily groaned but nodded anyway, "Understood. One last thing, we cannot spend all of our time training. We must continue to make regular trips to the Dungeon. We have some money from our travels, but that will only last us so long. Lily would also like to go into town soon to try and sell some of the items we acquired."

Hestia nodded and clapped her hands before the meeting could continue, "That's enough for now, my children. I believe it's time for bed. Whatever else arises can be dealt with tomorrow. Now, off to bed with all of you!"

Hestia ushered off her children to bed, except Bell, who was still sitting on the couch. Hestia sighed but walked to the fireplace instead. At some point, she had started a fire and had worked to keep it burning throughout the evening. Now she squatted down to add more logs and spoke.

"You know, Bell. I'm sure news of our return has spread throughout the town. People are going to be looking for us. If you were to disappear early tomorrow morning and find some peace and quiet…"

Bell did not look like he wanted to go find peace and quiet.

Hestia trailed off as she went to hug her most beloved first child. She wrapped her shawl around his shoulders, "You have to let go, Bell, and as much as it pains me to say it, you have to speak to Wallenwhatisit."

Bell leaned into his Goddess's touch, "I'm afraid, Goddess. I'm afraid that she'll turn away from me again. What happens if we fail? What happens if Freya wins? What happens to you?"

Bell broke down then, sobbing in the arms of the person who he held closest to his heart. Hestia flopped over onto the other side of the couch and cradled Bell closer, "Don't ever not do something because you're afraid for me. I will be very cross with you if you do! Also, don't you dare underestimate this Familia. We all care so deeply for you, and we will fight to our final breaths to keep you safe. Which brings me to my final point," Hestia took a moment to bring Bell's head up to her own. She cupped his cheeks and said, "You are never, ever alone," Hestia kissed his forehead, "Now go to bed, and go talk to Wallenwhatisit tomorrow morning."

With that, the last of Hestia Familia left for their rooms.

Chapter Text

The next morning, there were four familia members awake earlier than the rest. Welf returned to his forge, already hard at work. There was no real reason to return to his work other than the fact that he wanted to check and make sure that everything was alright with his forge. Thankfully, everything was just where he left it. The next two were Ryuu and Mikoto, off to recruit help from the Hostess of Fertility for Mikoto's training. Finally, there was a boy, out to see a girl, to talk about their future.

Walking through Orario in the early morning, Bell was overwhelmed with a sense of nostalgia. How many times had he made the same walk? Strolling through familiar paths on Daedalus Street, Bell was reminded of when he was chased through these same streets by a certain elven mage. He remembered chasing Weine through these same streets, and when he carried the Goddess from danger.

It was only a couple of minutes, but it felt like hours had passed when he finally began his ascent up the staircase of the wall of Orario. He reached the top and was greeted by three familiar people.

"Mister Argonaut!"

One was Tiona, who bounded over and tackled Bell in a hug.

"It is good to see you again, Bell Cranel. I take it you survived?"

Lefiya seemed equal parts happy to see him and angry that he showed his face. That was nothing new, though. The two of them seemed to be there for moral support, to keep Ais motivated enough to stay.

"…"

The last one was Ais, of course, and she was quiet. She looked anywhere but at Bell.

She mumbled, "Tiona, Lefiya…"

The other two took that as their cue to leave. Lefiya nodded, with what might have been a smile? Tiona was much more enthusiastic, pounding Bell on the back, saying that they would get drinks soon. Soon enough, there was just the boy and the girl.

Bell was looking for something to say, his eyes searching the floor. Then he was caught, two arms wrapped around his shoulders. He could feel Ais's body shaking, and she felt the tears on his neck and her head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," was all she said. She kept repeating the same phrase over and over again.

Bell was shocked into silence. Ais had never been like this before. She just kept holding onto him and crying her eyes out. Eventually, she ran out of tears and just held him. Bell cleared his throat and wriggled in her grip, which caused Ais to startle. Slowly, she let go of Bell and wiped at her eyes and nose. Bell panicked then because his grandfather had always told him to carry a handkerchief for crying women, but he didn't have one! The ultimate faux pas was being committed!

She finally finished cleaning her snot, and she looked away, red dusting her cheeks. She mumbled out something that Bell couldn't understand.

"I'm sorry, Miss Ais, what did you say?" asked Bell.

Ais mumbled something again, but Bell could not hear. He leaned closer.

"One more time, please?"

"Do you want to sit and talk?" asked Ais, her voice clear. Her face had slid back into its usual mask, which made it hard for Bell to get a read on her. Nonetheless, he nodded, and the two of them sat on the rampart, overlooking the city. They sat in silence for a while before Ais spoke first.

"How was your journey?" she asked.

"It was exciting. I saw more of the world than I thought existed," he replied.

"Did you find that elf's goddess?"

"Yeah, we found Lady Astrea. She had restarted her familia and offered for Ryuu to join."

"What'd Ryuu do?"

"She said no, and officially transferred over to our familia."

The boy and the girl sat in a silence as thick as the morning fog. The boy was so careful with his emotions, especially after what he had just witnessed. The girl didn't know what to do with the feelings she was experiencing. No one had ever left her and come back.

"What else happened?" asked the girl.

"Well, I saw the Dragon Valley! It was so intense! We had to leave after a month because of…well, I don't know if I should say. Then we separated a bit for training. I know Lily and Mikoto went to train with some Goddess friends of my Goddess. Welf went with Ryuu to a land of magic and saw lots of incredible things! He told me he met a God who helped with his swords, and Ryuu trained with powerful battlemages!"

"What about you?"

"I went with Goddess Hestia to visit Haruhime's home. She wanted to see her father again, and we wanted to help her. That's where we met Otohime and Urashima."

Ais tilted her head, "Otohime…and Urashima?"

Bell nodded, "They're the newest members of our familia! Well, them and Elwin. They're all really great!"

Ais smiled. It was always nice to see Bell so happy about his family. She only knew little details of his past and understood how much family meant to him.

"Otohime is like this big ball of sunshine! Every time I hang around her for too long, I feel like I've been drained! And Urashima taught me how to fish! I didn't do too well the first time…but I got good at it! And Elwin is my potato puff buddy; he knows how to make them all on his own!" continued Bell, babbling on.

"Ooohhh," replied Ais. A potato puff maker was an essential familia member. She needed to talk to Finn about finding one of their own.

Bell nodded, totally understanding, then he continued gushing about his family, "They're all so great, and I'm so grateful to them for joining us."

They chatted for a while, Bell telling stories about his new members. There was much he didn't say, mostly because those weren't his stories to tell. In return, he asked Ais what he had missed the past year. Ais told him small stories of her adventures with her familia. They spoke about the expeditions she had gone on, what monsters she had seen in the dungeon, and how far she had travelled.

"The sixtieth floor? That's incredible, Miss Ais," said Bell.

Ais pouted; she didn't know why, but it bothered her before, and it bothered her now. She mustered up what courage and emotions she had and said, "Bell, call me Ais, not Miss Ais, please."

Bell blushed again, "Are you sure about that?"

Ais nodded, "Yes, I mean, we're friends, aren't we?"

"Are we?"

The words slipped out. Ais froze up, and Bell stiffened. The two of them had carefully avoided the events leading up to his leaving Orario.

Ais reverted to her emotionless state, "I apologized, didn't I? I am sorry, Bell."

"Ais, why didn't you help us?"

It was the question that had kept Bell up at night all year. The one thing he kept returning to was, why did Ais stop Loki Familia from intervening? If she hadn't, they might've not had to hide in the dungeon. Why didn't she try to defend him from Freya Familia? Did he do something to upset her? Did he make a mistake?

"Did I do something wrong?" asked the boy.

The girl shook her head, "I'm not allowed to talk about why, but I can help now."

"Training?"

To Bell, it was his best guess. That was the go-to; what else could she do?

Ais nodded, "and I'm going to talk to Finn and Loki. I want to help you this time."

Ais's words were severe but small. She was sincere in her desire to help. She also felt embarrassed and decided it was time to leave.

With a simple, "Goodbye" she jumped off the wall.

Bell scrambled to his feet at the sudden departure. He was confused about what happened. First, Ais cried, and then she was apologizing. She promised help but then jumped off the wall. Then Bell noticed that the sun was starting to rise, and the city was starting to come to life. He had to head home and talk to the others. It was his responsibility as the Captain to make sure everything was ok. He took off and ran all the way home as fast as he could. Just as he reached home, he ran headfirst into someone, and they both fell to the ground.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!"

His face was buried in their chest as he mumbled an apology. After what seemed an eternity of embarrassment, he looked up. When he did, he was met with an awfully familiar pair of sky-blue eyes.

"Ryuu!"

Now Bell was flying off the body below him. He prostrated on the floor and apologized over and over again. Ryuu was too stunned to respond, and Mikoto was about to pass out from how red she had turned.

"Master Bell! What are you doing?"

And now Lily was here. Hands-on her hips, she marched up to the gate and levelled her best glare at these battle-hardened adventurers. Ryuu never thought such a little being could frighten her, the only exception being the Braver, but now she had spent the last year bearing the full brunt of the Lilliruka Arde glare. Whenever she spent an above-average amount of money, she felt the glare. Every time she stood near Bell, she felt the glare. She felt it now.

Lily spent all of ten seconds taking the image in before she grabbed Bell by the collar and dragged him inside. She called out that there was a Familia meeting as she left.

Inside, most of the Familia was getting breakfast. Bell grabbed a potato puff. Hestia bid them goodbye as she rushed out of the house in her work uniform. As the rest of them settled around the table, Haruhime bustled around the dining room in her maid uniform. It was a little challenging to get back into the swing of things, but it was done. Everyone had their tea or coffee, and finally, they all settled in the main room to discuss their plans.

"Lily is going to the Guild today to report our return officially. Lady Otohime, Mister Urashima, Miss Ryuu, and Mister Elwin will be coming with me to register," said the little prum. It was not a request.

Bell nodded, "I'll come to. I want to tell Miss Eina that I'm back."

"Well, leave your equipment. Today is full maintenance day. The forge is back up and running, and I want to prepare for our return to the dungeon," said Welf.

Haruhime nodded, "I will stay home as well. I want to do a full dusting of the house and make sure that everything is clean."

"I will help Lady Haruhime and prep the bathhouse," added Mikoto.

That got the Familia snickering at the poor samurai girl. Her obsession with baths was well documented, and no one was surprised that she wanted to stay home to reacquaint herself with the bathhouse.

Lily coughed and played with her hands, "Actually, Miss Mikoto…Lily wants to know…your year is up, do you want to return to Lord Takemikizuchi?"

Mikoto sat there for a minute, thinking. Everyone else was holding their breath, waiting for her answer. Another minute later, she shook her head.

"I promised myself I would only return when my lord saw me as more than a little girl. Or that is one reason. The other is," Mikoto's lip turned up into the most beautiful smile, "I have become quite fond of all of you. I don't want to stop our adventure!"

There was not a dry eye in the house then. Later, Hestia would be unbelievably happy to hear the news. She would be jumping around for the next week in celebration. Takemikazuchi nodded in understanding when he heard and told her that he would wait for her. The members of her former Familia were happy for her, and they were not sad because they knew they would adventure in the dungeon together anyway.

After that touching moment, those staying behind got to work, and the rest made their way to the guild headquarters. Ryuu was at the back of the line, understandably nervous about registering as an adventurer again. When they had left, they had gotten a promise that there would be no problems on their return, but who knew what had happened since then. They found their way into the hall, and Lily took most of the Familia members up to the front desk.

Bell made his way to the receptionist counter and was about to ask for Eina when a head of pink hair holding stacks of papers spotted him. She gasped and slapped her hands to her cheeks, and in doing so, dropped all the papers she was carrying.

"It's the little brother!" she shouted.

In response to the absolute chaos she was creating, a voice rang out from the back. The door opened, revealing a familiar green-eyed, spectacled half-elf.

"Misha! What in the world are you doing?" asked Eina.

Misha pointed at Bell, "It's your little brother Eina!"

Eina looked where Misha was pointing, and then she short-circuited. She just stared at Bell, tried to stammer out some words, and tried to move. Eventually, her brain rebooted, and she jumped at Bell, wrapping her arms around him. She held him close, drawing a lot of attention. It took a minute, but she remembered where she was. The adventurers wolf-whistling at her, and Bell dying from embarrassment, helped remind her of decorum. She took Bell by the arm and dragged him over to a private booth.

She sat him down and took the seat across from him. It was a familiar sight for the two of them. Bell sat there awkwardly, trying to figure out what to say, but Eina beat him to the punch.

"When did you get back?" she asked.

Bell scratched his cheek and said, "Only yesterday."

Eina nodded, seemingly appeased that she hadn't been forgotten. Then she asked, "When can you tell me what happened?"

Bell titled his head in response.

Eina blushed, "I mean, I know that you'll probably be busy for now, but I want to take you to lunch. I want to catch up, and I missed you, so I want to know what happened."

Bell blushed in response and told Eina that he could get lunch in three days. It would be an excellent time to take a break. After that, Bell told Eina the most immediate plans and asked her questions about the upcoming tournament.

"How did they just…make an item to create a level up?" asked Bell.

"It most likely came from Fels and the Xenos…" responded Eina. In Bell's year away, Eina had moved up the ladder in the Guild. Since her last adventurer, Bell, had left Orario, Eina was free to get the rewards and promotions she deserved from her hard work. She was in the know now. She knew about Fels, the Xenos, Knossos, and everything else.

"But how?" asked Bell.

"By getting the Xenos to harvest high-level excelia from deep in the dungeon. Fels was able to create a machine to harvest the excelia straight from the monster stone and then compress it. The orb is swallowed just like the Xenos do," responded Eina.

"How do they get around the major event?" asked Bell.

Eina held up a finger, resuming her tutoring position that she used to hold over the boy, "Fels was able to fake it with Xenos events. The details are still a little sketchy, but the Xenos are close enough to adventurers that their major events can count in adventurer's stead. Thankfully, no one in Orario has the skill set to recreate Fels items, and it's such a difficult and time-consuming process that no one else has been able to do it."

Bell made an "Ohhh" sound and nodded his head, but then his shoulders slumped.

"I still don't understand. Why are the Xenos still so willing to work with us? Adventurers killed so many of them last year."

Eina nodded, "As far as I understand it, they figure this is the best way to help. By being the creatures that can help create the level-up orbs, they are making themselves invaluable. Regular adventurers can't do what they're doing."

Bell didn't seem like he enjoyed that explanation, but he accepted it. Then he asked, "Who won last year?"

"For the level twos, the doubles tournament was won by Chigusa and Ouka of Takemikazuchi Familia," that made Bell happy. Those two deserved the win, and it meant they had more powerful level three allies.

"Mord Latro of Ogma Familia won the single's tournament," continued Eina. That was a shock to Bell's system. Bell was happy but also amused. He wouldn't say Mord was a friend, but they were friendly to each other. So, all in all, he was happy for Mord for the level-up. It spoke to his renewed sense of adventure.

"For the level three's, if I remember correctly, the double's was won by a pair from Hermes Familia. Daphne of Miach Familia won the singles," said Eina.

Bell made an ahh sound of total shock. Daphne had given no indication of her rapid growth to become a second-tier adventurer. Eina nodded along, "It came as a surprise to everybody. She had just become level three, and to become level four at the tournament was outstanding. She said she had to keep up with her absent friends."

That put a smile on Bell's face. To know that his friends were always thinking about him was a wonderful thing to hear.

"And the level four tournament?" he asked, the final round still a mystery.

"Loki Familia, both times. The double's was Anakitty Autumn and Raul Nord. The single's was Lefiya Viridis," replied Eina.

"Lefiya! But she's a mage!"

To put it lightly, Bell was shocked. For a mage to survive to the finals of a duel at all was news, but for a mage to win!

"She is the successor to Lady Riveria. Her magical power is already quite extreme. All she needs is one spell, and even an opponent who is a level above her own would have lost. Although it was hard to get the one spell off, once she did it, the battle was over," finished Eina, "She said she had to do it to keep up with her rival. That said, the melee portion almost beat her."

"The melee portions?"

Eina nodded, "To thin the number of adventurers, they all go through an opening melee. The last sixteen standing progress to the main tournament. Otherwise, the tournament would take forever!"

Bell nodded; in the end, it all made sense. Except for that part about the rival, she had no idea who Lefiya had picked for her rival. What person had the magic power to keep up with The Thousand Elf? Whoever it was, Bell pitied them.

There only remained one question, "Why start this tournament?"

Eina sighed, "After Freya held the city hostage looking for you, everyone was reminded of how fragile the Guild's power is. This tournament, and its reward, is a good way to remind people that we're important,"

Eina smiled, "Also, it helps the adventurers that are stuck. Too many seem to give up at level two or three. The Guild is hoping that this tournament encourages adventurers to keep fighting, even if they do not become living legends. However, the best part is, since it's a Guild-sponsored event, we can choose which Familia are banned. Freya's been banned for the next couple of years."

Hearing that Freya wasn't able to give herself the win made Bell happy. He exchanged pleasantries with Eina while also arranging their lunch together. Eventually, he heard Lily calling for him to head home. They had plans to make, she wanted to start training for the tournament, and she probably wanted to start planning their next large expedition in the dungeon. Yes, Bell might be the captain, but everyone understood who the brains of the operation were.

All that future planning did nothing to dampen the excitement of the newly registered adventurers, though. Otohime was especially vibrant. Urashima looked on fondly, not that he would ever let his Princess know. Elwin's excitement was more subdued but still visible in the way he held himself. Ryuu was decidedly relieved at her reintroduced status. Apparently, there were actions taken behind the scenes to clean up her name. What was even more shocking was that a certain beauty goddess had been partially responsible. She had brought it up to Lily, but the prum just shrugged. In the grand scheme of things, it was a small, inconsequential detail. One act of kindness did not absolve Freya of her crimes.

When they got home, Bell grabbed Urashima and started to drill him for combat. Urashima was much more experienced in the art of duelling, but if he practiced with someone who was two levels above him, he would be well trained. Meanwhile, Mikoto resumed her training with Ryuu. They had started working with the other waitresses from the Hostess of Fertility and even contacted Aisha about extra assistance.

Haruhime was busy still putting their house back together. After a year away, there was much to be done. Dust and cobwebs had sprouted in every room. Meanwhile, mould had taken root in damp corners. It was a lot for one maid to take care of, and to be honest, Haruhime was very much out of practice when it came to maid work. She took it slowly, getting herself back into the swing of things, which meant that cleaning this mansion would take a couple of days.

Welf was also hard at work. He had to remove old equipment, replace it with new equipment he had found in his travels, and generally get things tidy again. Not to mention all the gear he had to repair. Bell's armour and knives were fine. For Bell, repairs mostly went to the armour because, of course, the armour was dented. Then, there was the mountain of weaponry that Mikoto decided to start to carry on her person. Then there was Mikoto's and Ryuu's armour; both sets were partially made of mithril. Not just their gauntlets, but their chest plates, greaves, and battle cloth. It was a headache to maintain.

Then there was Otohime's specially designed armour, made for easy removal, and her goddamned bisento. He still wasn't sure what the damn thing was made of, but it was impressive. Then there were the staffs used by Elwin and Haruhime, which he barely understood. Finally, there was Urashima. That was an extremely complicated set of weaponry to handle, let alone fix. Doing maintenance on that would take a day and a half at least.

Lastly, Elwin and Otohime started studying. Since they weren't participating in the tournament, they decided it would be best to study for their eventual trip to the dungeon. If everyone else was preoccupied with the tournament, it was on them to make sure the familia made enough money to stay afloat. Lily decided this was where she would be of best use; she knew the dungeon and could do little else while Welf was busy with repairs. She took the role of advisor and drilled her knowledge of the dungeon into their heads.

They then gathered for dinner, ate a meal with Hestia, returned from work, and then set about planning their next expedition. Three days passed in quiet succession. Then, they were ready. Welf had finished the gear, Haruhime had finished cleaning, and their new members were informed about the dungeon.

They decided, for the first excursion back, that they would all take part. After that, though, it would mostly fall to Otohime, Elwin, Ryuu, and Bell to journey through the dungeon, looking for magic stones and drop items.

Their first day back, it took a couple of hours to reach floor seventeen, but only because Lily wanted to take time to make sure that everyone could recalibrate. No one made any critical errors, but many minor missteps could spell their demise.

They came to the goliath room to find the battle with the Monster Rex in full swing. Adventurers from Rivira had taken up position and were all in a mad dash to finish off the floor boss. When they saw Hestia Familia, they called out for help.

Otohime had already jumped at the large beast. The Goliath swung one of its massive arms, trying to catch her in its fist, but with a swing of her bisento, she was able to sever some fingers. The Goliath jerked back like it had been lit on fire.

Behind her came Urashima, wielding long knives. He propelled himself into the air, stabbing into the beast's wrists. He let gravity and his momentum tear him down, bloody spraying from the mangled right hand of the Goliath.

The others rushed to the Rivira citizens' aid, cutting down the monsters that had spawned amidst the floor boss. Elwin ran between them, whacking this way and that as he began chanting his magic.

"Lady Otohime, Mister Urashima! Pull back now!"

The two adventurers, who had been duelling Goliath, jumped out of the way at Lily's command.

"Oh, spirited archer, who watches from the heavens. I implore thee to visit with thine shining arrow. I name thee Sagittarius: Celestial shot!" chanted Elwin.

He whirled his staff to point at the Goliath. When he finished his chant, a great arrow made of starlight shot from his staff, his magic circle flashing beneath his feet. The arrow shot straight and true, impaling Goliath through its midsection. While the beast stumbled back from the impact, Otohime backed up to give herself space. She took a running start and then leapt into the air, thrusting out her bisento as she went. Her momentum allowed her to pierce the skull of Goliath. The beast let out a shriek of pain as the level-four-powered attack caused it to collapse. It fell backwards, sending out a small shockwave when it crashed. However, it was not dead yet…

When it fell, Urashima and Mikoto were quick to sever leg tendons. The other adventurers joined in, hacking away until the great beast was dead on the floor. Otohime was caught up trying to remove her weapon from the Goliath's head when a gang of monsters ambushed her. A surprised eep was all she managed; then, a familiar green blur was there beating down the monsters. It was a matter of seconds before all that was left was dust and stones.

"Don't stop moving, and don't lose your weapon! Ever!" came the voice of her vice-captain. It was incredibly strict. Before Otohime could apologize, Ryuu went back to help Bell and the others dispose of the leftovers. Otohime's heart was heavy at her failure. She finally managed to yank out her polearm when her most trusted companion joined her.

"Please don't do that, Princess," said Urashima, "You put yourself in danger much too often."

"These people were in trouble, and no matter my position, it will always be my duty and privilege to help," replied Otohime.

She believed those words with every fibre of her being. Her upbringing as a Princess played a part in it, but the reality was that she had always been like that. It was why Urashima had followed her so far. The others joined them atop the corpse of Goliath, apparently overhearing the exchange. Before Lily or Ryuu could reprimand her again, Bell walked up to her.

He said, "I understand that, and if you hadn't jumped to help, I would have. Remember, though, don't jump alone. We're here to jump with you."

Bell Cranel thought he was a poor captain, but Otohime would have to disagree. Moments like these showed that he knew exactly what he was doing.

Those kind words didn't stop Lily from scolding her, though. The Princess took it all in stride, though; she knew she deserved it. The lecture was lessened because since Otohime had brought the beast down, they got to keep the magic stone and goliath fur. Stingy Lily was pleased by that development and let Otohime off with a warning.

After that, Bors came up to hug Bell. He said his hellos to Hestia Familia and offered to pay for their lunch. Lily was also too quick to agree to that, so they passed a pleasant lunch break on the dungeon's eighteenth floor. For Otohime, Urashima, and Elwin, it was the most incredible thing they had ever seen. The rest of the familia caught up with the old, grizzled leader of Rivira.

"To be honest, we've been expecting you for a couple of days now," said Bors.

"We wanted to start adventuring sooner, but it took longer than we thought to settle back down," replied Bell.

Bors nodded and swapped stories with Bell. The old man told Bell about what happened in the dungeon, while Bell told Bors about what was going on above ground.

Meanwhile, a certain smith was stuck beating off adventurers. They had formed a crowd, and they were all asking for the same thing.

"There won't be any magic swords for any of you! If I hear one more word, you can see a Crozzo sword in action!"

The threats did little to ward off the hawkers, though. Even if it had been a year, everyone still remembered the strength and power afforded to Crozzo magic swords. Welf's reputation hadn't dimmed in the slightest. He was not happy about this. He was so unhappy with the crowd that the rest of the familia quickly excused themselves to return to the surface. Bell was a little put off by the development; he hadn't had a chance to look for signs of the Xenos. While they were walking up, Otohime fell in step with Welf in the middle of the party.

"I want you to make me a katana, please," she said.

Welf nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. Your weapon is good, but you need a secondary weapon. In case you lose your spear-thing again. What do you call it again?" Welf gestured to her beloved polearm.

"Its name is Same No Ha, Shark Tooth," replied Otohime.

Welf smiled at that, "Alright, I'll make you a couple of extra teeth, then yeah?"

Otohime beamed in reply, her steps carrying much more pep. Her mother had raised her on the principle that every failure was a chance for growth, so there was no real reason to be upset.

When they reached the surface, Lily and Haruhime left to exchange the magic stones. Bell went to see if he could talk to Eina while the others made their way home to clean up. The girls changed out of their clothes and went to the bathhouse. Ryuu was still nervous about bathing with other people but had made great strides in becoming more comfortable with her Familia. She was close enough with Mikoto and Haruhime to give them awkward hugs now.

The ladies lathered up, and they relaxed into the heat around them. Elwin, Urashima, and Welf were on the other side of the wall. As time went on, the others joined them. Finally, Hestia herself popped into the bath. She wore her usual large childlike grin as she joined her beloved children in the bath.

"So, how was the first day back in the dungeon?" asked Hestia.

"It was a good trip; we were able to grab the Goliath stone because a certain someone jumped at it," replied Lily, glaring at Otohime.

Hestia added her look, which made Otohime sink into the bath. Hestia relented and sighed before saying, "Please, I know you have a job to do, but remember that I'm going to be here waiting for you to get back."

Otohime nodded and responded, "Of course, Hestia. I apologize, I just saw people who were in danger…"

Hestia sighed again, "I hate how that sums up the majority of my children. When did my Familia become like a bunch of heroes?"

It was then that Ryuu let out one of her small, gentle smiles. They were as rare as hen's teeth, but they were so beautiful.

"This familia reminds me of Astrea's. I love that we have a strong sense of justice and that we don't abandon others. It makes me happy with my choice to join," she said.

Ryuu didn't speak a lot, so her familia listened. Hestia giggled in response, "And we're happy to have you, vice-captain. By the way, have you and Bell figured out a rotation for who goes into the dungeon?"

Ryuu nodded, "We'll be bringing it to you tonight during the meeting."

Ryuu, Bell, and Hestia had agreed to meetings every couple of days to keep an eye on the affairs of the Familia. Lily still handled the finances, and Welf dealt with the gear, but the Goddess and her captains handled the big picture plans.

The familia finished their washing up, grabbed dinner, and then Ryuu, Bell, and Hestia went to the Familia's Office. Hestia had claimed an empty room for this exact purpose when they returned. She had moved a desk inside and started filling it with what they would need. Lily spent the most time in there, looking over the books, but this was the best spot for their meetings.

Ryuu leaned against the wall, as cool as ever. Bell sat in an armchair, hands under his legs, and Hestia was sitting on the desk across from him, swinging her legs like a child.

Hestia spoke first, "How are the new ones settling in?"

Ryuu shrugged, "As well as expected. Urashima is still cautious, but that's nothing new. Elwin is anxious, which is understandable. Otohime is still Otohime, bouncing around like a ball of sunshine."

That made Hestia chuckle, "That's good then. What about you, guys? How does it feel to be back?"

Ryuu tilted her head, "I think it's fair to say that it's strangest for me. I'm an adventurer again, which I like, but it's weird not to see anyone from the bar anymore."

"Have you talked to Syr, or Helun, or whatever she's calling herself yet?" asked Hestia.

Ryuu couldn't look her Goddess in the eye.

Hestia nodded, then look at her first child, "What about you, Bell? Did you speak to Wallenwhatsit?"

Bell blushed and nodded, "We were able to talk the one time. She said she was going to help us."

"What does that mean?" replied Hestia.

Bell shook his head, "I don't know, but I still trust her. If she says she'll help, she will."

Hestia nodded, "I trust her too, and I trust Loki, I guess. Or I trust Loki not to let Freya win. That said," Hestia looked at Ryuu, "My order is for you to go to the Hostess of Fertility and see Syr and Mamma Mia. I'm sure they're worried about why you haven't shown up yet."

Ryuu just nodded in response.

Hestia seemed satisfied and moved to the next topic, "How does it look like training is going?"

Ryuu nodded, "Well. Welf and Lily have created some solid strategies for the tournament, and Mikoto's progress is nothing short of incredible. She's absorbing the new techniques faster than we can teach her."

"Who's we?"

"Me, the waitresses, and Aisha."

"You've been working with the waitresses but still haven't seen Syr or Mia?"

Ryuu blushed, and Hestia shook her head, muttering something about stubbornness.

Hestia looked to Bell, "How's Ura doing?"

Bell nodded, "Well, I'm not sure how I'm doing as a teacher, but I think he's doing well. He was already incredibly skilled. I mean, he's not fighting at his full potential…but it's still good progress all the same."

"Good. Looking forward, our next expedition. Where do we go?" Hestia was now thinking long term goals.

Bell responded, "I've been talking with Eina, and she says that she can get us a mission for the thirty-fourth floor. Since me and Ryuu are level five, and the rest are level two's and three's, with one level four, we've been upgraded to B Rank."

Hestia snorted, "I'm sure little Miss Supporter is ecstatic about the tax hike."

Ryuu made a thin line with her mouth, "Floors twenty-eight to thirty-three are nothing like the ones above. They're desserts: no walls, just dunes and unbearable heat. The only refuge is scattered Oases that draw monsters. Not to mention, if we were to do it as we are now, we would need to recruit Lord Takemikazuchi's Familia and Lord Miach's. We need more higher-level adventurers, even if we win the tournament. I'm sure Aisha will want to join us, and all of it is welcome. The more people we bring, the more water we can carry."

"Is it that important?" asked Hestia.

"If I had to choose between a canteen of water or the largest magic stone in the world, I'd choose the canteen. The only saving grace is that the Water Capital is right above it," replied Ryuu. She had the most adventuring experience, years with a previous familia tucked under her belt.

Hestia nodded, "I'm guessing we'd need special clothing for the heat?"

Ryuu agreed, and Hestia pouted. That was a lot of valis to spend to get ready, especially if they were hosting the expedition for other Familias.

"The price doesn't matter. We need reputation and attention right now. We need to do whatever it takes to survive," said Bell.

There was the truth. They were banking on putting themselves in a place of enough attention that Freya couldn't launch her next attack. They were buying time to become stronger and forge stronger alliances.

"Anything else?" asked Hestia.

"I saw Lord Hermes on our first night back," said Bell.

That made Hestia scowl, "What does that liar want?"

Bell shrugged, "I don't know. I didn't talk to him. I have to think, though…he didn't tell people where we were this year. Maybe we can start trusting him again?"

Hestia scowled some more, "Maybe, maybe not. He's still the reason Freya found us. He's still the reason that the Xenos were attacked."

Bell looked incredibly conflicted now; Hestia nudged him with her foot, "I'll deal with Hermes, Bell. Ryuu, I want you to tell Asfi I want to meet with her God."

Ryuu nodded in response. She hadn't seen Asfi yet, but she was excited to speak to someone she considered an old friend. Hermes was a pain in the butt, but she trusted Asfi to get the meeting together.

With that, the Hestia Familia executives ended their meeting.

Chapter Text

Mikoto was conditioned to wake up early. Her routine could not be skipped. She woke up with Haruhime in their shared room since they refused to separate and got to work dressing for the morning. Haruhime put on her maid outfit, while Mikoto put on training garbs and braided her hair. They chatted idly and spent time together. Afterwards, they split for the day.

While Haruhime got the house ready, Mikoto met Ryuu at the front gate. Then, the two of them strolled through Orario to the yard behind the Hostess of Fertility. They kept training weapons there. While they warmed up, the rest of Mikoto's training partners joined them. What had started with Lunoire, Anya, and Chloe had recently added Aisha. Also, for the first time this particular morning, Asfi was in the courtyard. She played with her glasses and her outfit, clearly uncomfortable.

When Ryuu spotted her old friend, she directed Mikoto to begin sparring while she spoke to Asfi. Just as Ryuu had given the order to start, Aisha launched herself at the young lady in purple. Mikoto dodged Aisha's padao but then took a hit to her right side from Lunoire. The waitress had already backed up, her fists up in position for the next strike. Mikoto couldn't respond, though; she was busy parrying Chloe's daggers. Then she was moving to the side, trapping Anya's spear and Chloe's daggers.

Mikoto was able to trip Chloe up with her foot, sending her into Anya. Then she pivoted on her free foot, Aisha's sword slicing by her face. Mikoto used her momentum to kick Aisha across the head. The action barely registered on the level four's face but, but it gave Mikoto a chance to push off her opponent and gain some space. She returned her sword to the ready position with a roll of her wrists and shoulders. Her opponents faced her.

"Her technique's better, nyan!" said Anya.

"Managing the space and her opponents better too," added Lunoire.

"No time to get complacent though!" shouted Aisha, taking off.

The amazon swung her large blade down, Mikoto nudging the edge away with her own katana. Then she dropped one hand, grabbed her knife, and stabbed at Aisha. She buried the blade in the Amazon's side. The movement was automatic; the only reason she had the knife was that sleeping with it was a habit. Everyone stopped at the sign of bleeding, Mikoto stumbling back, tripping on her feet. She wanted to apologize, but her throat closed up, choked on memories.

"Good Yamato! Remember, you have two hands! Use them, attack always!"

The rush of battle came back to her then. The cheers of the arena drowning out what was going on around her. She saw a pair of eyes, one gold, the other blue, and her mouth felt like it was filled with sand. She felt someone grab her shoulder, but her body reacted automatically by grabbing their wrist and executing a perfect throw. The next thing Mikoto knew, Ryuu had crashed into a pile of crates, Aisha was bleeding on the floor, and the others were watching her with wary eyes. Then Mikoto felt her stomach-churning, the memories of her victims haunting her. When did her heart start beating so loud? She could feel it vibrating through her body. Any movement she saw was fuzzy. She forgot how long she was there.

Mikoto proceeded to hold her head, almost crushing it from the pressure. Then, she felt her hands trembling. She began unbraiding and braiding her hair, the repetition helping to calm her down. Her breathing regulated, and she came back to the training yard. Ryuu was crouching down in front of her, calling out her name. The elf sounded like she was in a deep well. Slowly, Mikoto tried to focus on Ryuu's voice.

Mikoto steadied and tried for a shaky smile, "I apologize for my freak out. It has been a while since I…"

If she had failed at trying to reassure the elf, she would never know. Ryuu grabbed Mikoto's hands in her own, "It's alright. Now, what do you want to do next?"

Mikoto swallowed some air, "I wish to continue training if that is ok?" When she spoke, Mikoto tasted how dry her mouth was, and then she felt how empty her stomach was, "May I have some food and water as well?"

Ryuu looked to the rest of the gathered women. They all shrugged, having done much worse as former assassins and adventurers. Lunoire walked inside to get the food and water. Aisha was already applying a healing potion to her wound; she looked at Mikoto.

"That was probably the best move you've pulled so far, Eternal Shadow. Where the hell did you learn to do that?" asked Aisha.

Mikoto stood up, brushed herself off, but she couldn't look Aisha in the eye, "Nike's Arena."

They continued training for hours afterwards. Mikoto asked her training partners if she could borrow their weapons and train with them. Everyone obliged, and she took time to practice with every weapon at her disposal.

During one of the water breaks, Aisha pulled Ryuu off to the side with Asfi.

"What in the world happened to her?" asked Aisha.

Ryuu let out a puff of air, "Her training took her to the arena of Nike. She fought a lot of people out there, all of it for her life. I see it sometimes in her training. She turns feral. She forgets the refined technique she's used to and just starts swinging. It's terrifying but also a little beautiful in its own horrific way. That killer instinct is something she tries to suppress," Ryuu puffed again, "If she could learn to meld it with her refined technique, she'd be a force of nature."

Asfi looked at Ryuu over the rim of her glasses, "What else did your familia get up to Leon?"

Ryuu met Asfi's stare, "That is a secret of my familia, which you are not entitled to."

Asfi looked away and mumbled an apology. Aisha chuckled and walked off to speak with the girl herself. Mikoto was splashing water in her face from the rain barrel in the corner.

"Shadow, you can't keep holding back," said Aisha.

Mikoto shook her head, "What I learned terrifies me. Everything I learned were killing moves."

"That's why you need to stop holding back. Use your strength, control it. The second it controls you, the bastards win," replied Aisha, "trust me, after what Ishtar did, I get it. I understand being afraid…"

Mikoto was shocked to hear that. Then she got more shocked when Aisha told her story of her time with Ishtar Familia. The disgusting practices of Ishtar and her former Captain left Mikoto feeling like she was about to puke. Instead of turning away from it, though, Aisha focused on reclaiming her body as her own. Mikoto gained a tremendous amount of respect for this amazon.

"You need to do the same. You were turned into a killer? Fine, show that you choose where your blade goes. Don't let them lock your strength away. You have technique; now merge it with your killer instinct. Become a truly dangerous fighter," finished Aisha.

Mikoto nodded at that. It could be done, but it would take time. When she returned to training, she forced herself to remember. She brought her newly acquired instincts into her routine. She felt her moves grow wilder but faster. She became more aware of every movement her opponents tried. When control slipped, she would reign herself in. Her technique sharpened, but her blows would lack decisiveness. She took many hits because of it. By the end of their session, she felt like she had gone backwards but in the right way. Mikoto was learning to process what happened. She was reclaiming her strength, and no one would take it away ever again.

In the end, she cleaned up, thanked the women for helping, and began walking home with Ryuu. The elf had kept out of the fighting, shouting advice as Mikoto took the blows. Ryuu also taught as they walked home.

"You were better at the end. Every practice before, your body has not been synced with your mind. Your sense of honour was holding you back. Mikoto, combat is combat. If you hold back in the dungeon…"

Mikoto replied, "I'm afraid of what happens. In the arena…you get backed into a corner. I held on, but others didn't. Good men and women…turned into monsters."

"And? What could you have done to change that?" asked Ryuu.

Mikoto shrugged, her eyes focused on the road. She replied, "Something…anything. I could've done…there must have been something."

Ryuu nodded, "Maybe there was, but who are you to judge yourself? Who is anyone to judge each other? You were locked in an arena and made to kill. What is left is to live, remember, and keep moving. You are not a killer Mikoto, I should know."

Ryuu pulled the young girl into a hug. It was still uncomfortable to touch other people, but she felt a sense of duty to her junior. Mikoto responded half-heartedly. When Ryuu pulled away, the young Far Eastern adventurer remained quiet. As they got closer to home, Mikoto tried to pull herself together to not worry her friends. By the looks she got when they went home, she failed.

As they sat together and ate breakfast, the others were careful not to bring up Mikoto's state. Ryuu did her fair share of distraction by telling everyone that she had met with Asfi.

"Oh, what did she have to say?" asked Hestia.

"She said she would talk to Hermes. They should try to contact you soon," replied Ryuu.

Hestia groaned, "I hate working with Hermes; he's probably going to surprise me in a back alley or something."

Ryuu shook her head, "I made it very clear that was unacceptable."

Hestia showed her appreciation with a whoop, and then she finished her breakfast. She had work to get to. Before she left, though, she made a point of grappling Mikoto into a crushing hug. The girl responded in kind; then the Goddess was out the door. The others cleaned up the table, then set to work. Ryuu took Haruhime, Elwin, and Otohime to the dungeon, Lily and Welf set to training, and Urashima left to repair his armaments. Bell stayed at the table, watching Mikoto.

"Sir Bell, please don't worry about me. I'll be ok," said Mikoto.

Bell responded with a question, "Did I ever tell you what I was thinking when I saved Weine from Loki Familia?"

Mikoto shook her head. Bell blushed and let out a long puff of air.

"I was standing in the square, and everyone's eyes were on me. Perdix had just called me a hypocrite. I was so torn on what to do. The people of Orario were shouting for me to kill Weine, to be their hero. I couldn't do it, though. Weine deserved to live. I still remember all that noise…" Bell shook his head, chasing away the bad memory, "In the end, I chose to save her. I chose to be a hypocrite, but I will be a hero too."

"That is beautiful, Bell, but what does that have to do with me becoming a killer?" replied Mikoto.

Bell scratched the back of his neck, "Well…if I'm a hypocrite for saving monsters but still a hero, why can't you be the same?" He was clearly out of his depth, but the boy did the only thing he knew. He spoke from the heart, "You feel like the people want you to be a killer, but you're don't want to hurt people. You want to be a hero too, right?"

Mikoto nodded. She wasn't looking at the floor anymore; she was looking Bell in the eye.

"Then be the hero who can stop killers. You trained to kill, so you should be one, but instead, you're a hero. You can be a hypocrite then, just like me," finished Bell. He was obviously uncomfortable and couldn't return Mikoto's gaze.

Mikoto was touched that her Captain would come and speak to her like this. So often, people saw only the boy or the hero. Underneath all that, though, was a kind person. That was the part that Mikoto chose to follow.

"Thank you, Bell," said Mikoto.

Bell noticed the drop in honorifics and smiled. He stood from the table and asked, "Would you like to train? I told Welf and Lily I would help them today. Urashima is doing maintenance on his arms."

Mikoto nodded and followed her captain out to the yard. Welf and Lily were already going at it. Welf swung his large sword in great swooping arcs. Each blow sent dirt flying. Around it, Lily used her smaller size and speed to dodge. She weaved her way around Welf's defences and then fired her arm-mounted crossbow. It was death by a thousand cuts.

The young prum never got there, though. Welf was able to connect one of his blows, and Lily was sent flying into the shrubbery. Before she could regain her feet, Welf had planted a boot on her chest. He levelled his sword at Lily and raised an eyebrow. Lily glared him down for three seconds before she threw her hands in the air.

"Fine, Lily surrenders! Mister Welf wins!" declared the little prum.

Welf lifted his boot and helped Lily off the ground. At the sound of approaching footsteps, they turned to Bell and Mikoto.

"Are you two joining us?" asked the smith.

Bell nodded, and Mikoto rolled her shoulders. She raised her hand and asked, "Would it be terrible if I practiced against all of you?"

Welf and Bell looked skeptical, but Lily was quick to nod her head, "Lily thinks that's a good idea."

The boys shared a helpless shrug before taking up positions on either side of their samurai. Mikoto held no weapons, but she didn't seem to care.

When everyone had taken their positions, Mikoto motioned to start. Welf, ever impatient, was the first to leap. As his sword came crashing down, Mikoto took one step to the side. The moment the sword made an impact, Mikoto chopped at Welf's hands. She hit just the right point to get his hands to flinch back. The next moment, she grabbed the free sword in front of her and swung it in a great arc. It came just in time to stop Bell's blades. Three levels of difference were definitely showing as Mikoto struggled to hold back the small daggers.

Mikoto didn't care, though; she had moved onto her next move. Using Bell's defensive position, she jumped and pushed off his face, dropping Welf's sword as she did. It weighed her down too much. It did little to hurt Bell, but it stunned him long enough for Mikoto to launch herself at Lily.

"Always remove your ranged enemies first. They'll sit there and strike when you've forgotten them!" roared Lord Horus in her ear.

Mikoto gave Lily one chop to the side, and the prum crumpled from abdominal pain. As she pivoted back to her remaining opponents, she could feel the heat of days gone past. She didn't let it stifle her, though. She chose to remember, to live through it. Welf had regained his sword and started swinging. The smith fought like every other brute from the arena, strength over skill. However, all he would need is one blow, so she decided not to give it to him.

His sword had a long reach, but once inside it, the weapon was useless. Ducking under the first of his swings, Mikoto pushed off the ground. She shifted her body so her shoulder was on his chest. Welf lost his balance, so Mikoto hooked a foot behind his leg. As she did that, she used her opposite hand to punch him in the temple. Attacked from the bottom and the top, Welf crumpled. Mikoto gave a quick stomp to his neck, and he was out of the fight.

Bell had stayed out of it, too shocked to join. The economic movement of her fighting, the brutality of her blows. He was reminded of the amazon twins, Tione and Tiona. However, Mikoto also had grace. Years of training in martial arts helped her body flow through combat like a dancer. Bell didn't wait around long, though. He pushed off on one foot; the other leg swung for Mikoto's midsection. The move was too fast to dodge, so she moved with it. That isn't to say that it didn't hurt a lot. Mikoto knew he was holding back, though, because it only made her grit her teeth instead of coughing up blood. So, she rolled with it and landed on her feet. Her body was still crouched, so she used it to her advantage.

She kept her body low as she went for her captain. The advantage of rolling with the hit was that she had taken Bell's knife from his leg holster. The look from Bell's face told her that he hadn't noticed. Unfortunately, stealing weapons from her opponents had become the norm.

"Remember Yamato, when you steal, you gain a weapon, and they lose one!" came the voice of Lord Horus, "The only thing you have to do is train to use every weapon!"

Knives were one of the first weapons Mikoto trained within the Arena. She couldn't match Bell's strength, so she guided his blade away, looking to create an opening. Bell kept his guard up, though. While Mikoto had an advantage in skills and tactics, Bell's overwhelming force was too much, compounded with his own training. Before she knew it, there was a punch she didn't see, and then she hit the fence at the end of the yard. The world spun for a second before she was able to pull it together.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" chanted Bell. He ran up to her, pulling out a potion vial from his leg holster. Mikoto drank it, thankful that Bell was so thoughtful and well-prepared. The potion helped her head settle, and she took Bell's hand to help her up.

"That was awesome, Mikoto! You were so slick, and your technique was awesome! I didn't even realize you took my knife!" said Bell, bouncing with excitement.

"Oh! Here's the knife back, by the way! Sorry, I know that stealing is dishonourable!" Mikoto bowed in apology.

"Lily thinks that it was the smart thing to do! Honour is important, but so is survival. Right now, we are engaged in a fight for our lives," came the voice of Lily. She had recovered enough to stand. Welf stood next to her.

"Yeah, sorry to say, but Freya isn't going to wait around and running away isn't an option this time. We try to run again; she's likely to chase us down and finish what she started," said Welf.

"So why hasn't she?" asked a new voice. It was Urashima, finished with his weapon maintenance.

Lily turned to the new voice, "It's too soon. We have only just returned, and our familia is too famous. Even Freya can't fight the whole city. That is why we must do well at the tournament, to keep our popularity up.

"And what comes next?" asked Urashima, "I have seen politics like these before. You can only be safe in the limelight for so long."

"Then we ask Ais," said Bell.

Lily nodded, "Lily is planning on going to Loki Familia. They are the only option for an alliance strong enough to stop Freya. Right now, Lady Hephaistos is our only powerful ally, and she will only protect us for so long."

Urashima tilted his head, "What about those monster people? The ones you hid within the dungeon. What were their names? The Demos?

"Xenos," corrected Bell, "We hid in the dungeon, with the Xenos, and I am never going to make them part of my problems again."

"But it wasn't enough?" added Urashima, "I'm sorry, but I'm still unclear about what happened. I want to keep milady safe, and I need to know what happened to do it. I will fight by your side, always, but I need to know that she isn't going to die."

Welf nodded, "Fair enough, pal. So no, it wasn't enough to hide with the Xenos. Freya Familia found us after Lord Hermes ratted us out and slaughtered Xenos to get to us. Most notably, a gargoyle named Gros and a siren named Ray. After that, a high-ranking member of the guild, Fels, helped us sneak out of Orario with a promise to return."

Urashima shook his head, "Which doesn't make sense to me. Why the promise to return?"

Bell spoke again, "Goddess Freya is consumed with desire. If I left for too long, she would chase after me. Then her followers would come after her, burning down the world to keep her happy. That's how she got us last time. She almost held the city hostage, saying that she would destroy everything to find me. Almost everyone was against us, and Loki Familia turned their back on us."

"So why not surrender?" Asked Urashima.

"Because it ain't right. I refuse to have my best pal be forced into fulfilling the desire of some deranged goddess," said Welf before Bell could answer. Bell looked down in shame, still guilty that his familia was in danger because of him.

"Master Bell! That is enough; pull your eyes up and look at Lily," said the prum girl. When Bell did as she said, she continued her tirade, "Master Bell will listen and understand; you are Lily's family. Lily will not abandon you no matter how many Gods and Goddesses decide to pursue you. Lily will be there and be your supporter. That is Lily's choice, and don't you dare to try to take it away from Lily!"

"What the Lil' bit said! I'm with you till the end of the line!"

"I promised you, Sir Bell, I will always be there to help you."

Bell was struck silent than by the loyalty of these people. These were the first members of his Familia. They had joined him to stop Apollo, and now they still stood beside him to stop Freya. He loved these people and treasured their friendship.

"So, you're all goddamn insane then?" asked Urashima. Everyone nodded, and he smiled.

"Then that means that I'm in good company!"

Everyone laughed then, born out of a desire to chase away their own darkness.

"One final question, though," said Urashima. After training, him, Welf and Bell were at the bathhouse.

"If this Loki Familia is supposed to be your ally, why didn't they help you back then?" asked the bodyguard.

"Ais Wallenstein, a high-ranking member of Loki Familia owed a favour to Freya. Freya cashed it in at the worst possible moment and forced her to turn her back on us. The rest of Loki Familia was forced to follow along. However, that favour's gone now, and Ais gave her word that she would help us," replied the boy in love.

"And you trust her?"

Bell nodded once, his back straight.

"I trust her with my life."

That was a lie.

At that same moment in the Twilight Manor, a girl was sitting on her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest. She was confused, trying to make sense of her newfound emotions. Why had she cried? She hadn't cried since her mother and father, but when she saw Bell standing there on top of the wall, something broke. She felt so horrible for what she had done. When he came to her, crying for help, she was forced to turn her back on him. She was not going to do that again. So, she had sat in her room for the past couple of days, trying to figure out how to convince Finn.

Finn, while trying to be a real hero, was still a pragmatist. There was only so much he would do in overt action. More likely, Finn would work behind the scenes to keep Hestia Familia safe. That felt wrong to Ais, though. Bell and his familia deserved allies that would stand with them for all to see. After everything that happened, Ais was ready to stand up and say she stood with Hestia Familia; she only hoped others were too.

There was a knock on her door, and Lefiya poked her head in.

"Miss Ais, the Captain wants to see you in his office. He said that he wants to talk about Bell Cranel," said the elf.

"Lefiya?" asked Ais.

"Yes, Miss Ais?"

"Are you happy that Bell is back?" asked Ais. She knew better than to believe that Lefiya really hated Bell. At most, she found him annoying, but they respected each other at the very least.

Lefiya curled her lips for a second before nodding once.

"That boy might be impertinent, but," Lefiya paused, "how do I say this? He makes me feel like I can keep hoping. I don't think that things will be ok, but he makes me think that there's always a way to keep going. If we can help, I think we should."

That one took Ais by surprise. She titled her head and Lefiya continued unbidden.

"I can think of logical reasons, like stopping Freya, but the most basic reason is…he would do the same for us."

Ais nodded. She liked that answer a lot. She stood up and followed Lefiya to Finn's office. They made small talk, as much as Ais could make small talk, and quickly found themselves at the door to the Captain's office. Lefiya knocked, and someone shouted for them to come in. When they walked inside, they found Loki, Finn, Riveria, Gareth, Tione, Tiona, and Bete lounging around. Finn motioned for Lefiya to leave, and she shut the door behind her.

"Ais, have you been able to meet with Bell Cranel yet?" asked Finn.

Ais nodded.

"See! I told you, Finn!" said Tiona.

"Thank you, Tiona. Now Ais, what did you two talk about?"

"He told me about what he's been doing, and I told him what I've been up to. I told him I was sorry, but I think he's still angry," Ais said, trailing off.

"That's understandable, lass. You turned your back on him and forced us to do the same. Then he had to rely on the Xenos, and we lost Ray," said Gareth.

Tione flinched at that. She had liked Ray and still felt indebted to her for saving the love of her life. The rest of Loki Familia was still feeling guilty about that loss too. Compound that with the feeling of not being able to help Hestia Familia, so soon after the Knossos incident, Loki Familia's mood was at an all-time low. Alicia was especially depressed about the siren and was still unable to fight any siren-type monsters.

Ais's melancholy settled even deeper, "I know. He told me about that, and he was angry at me…"

Riveria sighed, "That's what happens, Ais, but I think it'll be ok…right, Finn?"

Finn nodded, but now Ais was terribly confused. What did that mean?

Finn gave her a small smile, "I want you to help them, Ais, personally. I'm sure that they're busy with the tournament right now, but after that, they should be going on a required expedition. I want you to go with them. You're gonna guide them to meet with us in the dungeon."

Ais blinked at that. Her brow was slightly furrowed, but it screamed surprise. That got Gareth laughing very loud, "Lass, we know you're gonna help. So, you're going to be the face of helping Hestia Familia. Meanwhile, the rest of us are gonna work around, setting things up to face down Freya Familia."

Ais made a little oh with her mouth, "So I get to help Bell in public?"

Loki nodded, "Itty-bitty gets to make it clear that she's not alone, and I get a chance to take down that witch. She killed Ray-ray," Loki scowled, "I'm not letting that one stand."

"Hey, hey! Do I get to help Mr. Argonaut too?" asked Tiona.

Riveria nodded, "We were hoping you and Lefiya would both lend a hand. As far as we know, they don't have a dedicated mage, do they?"

Ais shook her head, "Their new half-elf member is a mage. His name is Elwin."

Riveria narrowed her eyes, "Elwin? Interesting name for a half-elf…still though," she turned to Tiona, "You and Lefiya will get to help out later."

"Okay!"

Ais looked at Finn, "I think you should meet with the prum girl. Bell said she's the one making the plan right now."

"If the Captain is meeting with another potential wife, then I'm coming too!" declared Tione.

Loki nodded, "I agree with Aizu! They say Lilliruka Arde is the brains in itty-bitty's Familia. She's probably got a better plan than you Finn!"

Finn took his thumb to his mouth, then nodded, "It seems my thumb agrees. Alright, I'll get working on setting up a meeting with Miss Lily. That's it, you lot, thank you!"

As the Familia filed out of the room, Ais tugged on Riveria's sleeve, "Riveria? Can I talk with you, please?"

Riveria nodded and followed Ais to her room. Ais took a seat on her bed and Riveria sat at the chair next to Ais's desk.

"What's wrong, Ais?"

Ais pouted, "How do I get Bell to be my friend again?"

Riveria allowed herself to smile. She really did love what this boy did to her daughter. She coughed to cover her joy before looking at Ais, "Well, since you can openly offer support, may I suggest getting lunch? You can talk with him about joining the expedition. Doing things like that can work," at Ais's confused stare, she sighed, "Be there for him, Ais. The same way that Tiona, Tione, and Lefiya are there for you; you need to be there for him."

Ais seemed to contemplate it for a second before nodding, "I can bring him the new potato puff flavours that he missed!"

Riveria snorted, "Sure, Ais, it's a start. Anything else?"

Ais shook her head, and Riveria left.

With that, Ais felt her heart lighter than it had been all year.

Chapter Text

Urashima had to wake early, even if he didn't always like it. He worked for the imperial household, and that involved early mornings organizing Otohime's security detail. So, when he came to Orario, he was gratified to find that his familia was like him. They were mostly early birds who woke with the sun, and they worked hard. They were not a large familia, and they were in desperate times with a fight for their lives, but Urashima respected their work ethic.

When he woke that morning, he did his usual routine. He made himself presentable and then checked on his princess. He would peek in and find her still asleep, and he would smile. Then, he readied his armaments for the day. After that, he joined his Familia for breakfast. He started by seeping the tea that Otohime liked the most, then joined the others. It took him a week, but he soon got used to the schedule of chores. Today was his day to clean the dishes. Then, they sat down to plan out the day. Today was different, though. Three weeks into living here, and they were going to be staying overnight in the Dungeon.

Takemikazuchi would be bringing his Familia for the night to look after the place. Hestia Familia would venture down and camp out on floor 24, meander around a bit, and then return the next day. A short trip to get Urashima and the other new members used to the idea of spending a night in the Dungeon. Their weapons were prepared, their items were stocked, and morale was high. Urashima couldn't say he wasn't excited, but his first weeks in the Dungeon had taught him caution. Between Lily's trepidation and Welf boisterousness, he leaned towards Lily's perspective. His life had taught him that accidents will always happen the second that you don't want them to. It was an accident that had caused the greatest tragedy of his life. That wasn't what he was supposed to be focusing on, though. Right now, he was focusing on items.

One of Urashima's talents was that he had the developmental ability, synthesis. So, before the mini-expedition, he was helping Lily and Haruhime prepare their items.

"It truly is a wonderful thing that you can create items, Master Urashima," said Haruhime, filling her bag.

"Well, I'm only really good at poisons and status-affecting items. Some bomb variations. Making these medical items has been a nice change of pace," replied Urashima.

"Lily agrees. Making medicine is always preferred to items that kill. The stink bombs are useful, though," added Lily.

"Which is why I made a sack of them," finished Urashima, "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to check on my garden."

The ninja of the east left the two supporters to finish their packing. By that point, he would be more a hindrance than a help.

The garden was Urashima's pet project. He loved working with plants. Gardening was an activity that helped calm him, and Otohime always loved the pretty flowers that he grew. However, coming to Orario meant that his plants shifted to a more utilitarian variety. They were plants that could be made into weapons or medicine.

As he tended his plants, he let himself get lost in thought for the coming expedition. Apparently, floors nineteen to twenty-four were referred to as the Great Tree Labyrinth and were full of vegetation. He was hoping that he could find seedlings to bring back with him.

While working in his garden, the woman who held his heart knelt down next to him. She quietly got to work, helping him cut weeds and water newly planted seeds. Every once in a while, their hands would brush. Urashima had gotten to the point where contact wouldn't freak him out. For whatever reason, Otohime found touch soothing. She brushed against his despicable hands many times. Eventually, Otohime did what she meant to and grabbed for him. She lowered her head to his shoulder.

"What is wrong, Milady?"

Otohime grunted, "Informal, please."

Urashima sighed, "As you say…Otohime."

"I'm scared."

"About the expedition?"

Then it all came spilling out, "The expedition, my position in this familia, if we're doing the right thing…"

Urashima nodded before sitting back on his legs. Otohime mirrored him and they both turned, so they were eye to eye.

Urashima thought of taking her hands, trying to reassure her, but the thought nauseated him, "It's ok to be nervous about all of this. The dungeon is the most dangerous place in the world. We used to hear stories about it growing up, and none of them were pleasant. Even when we're just staying there for a day, it's a dangerous place to be. As for this familia, that's also understandable. You used to be a princess. You were third in line for a powerful empire. Now, you are just any other adventurer. This is unknown territory for you. I would be worried if you weren't nervous about all this. For the last point, I think we're doing the right thing. My instincts are screaming that this is the right place for us. I like these people; I trust them," said Urashima.

Otohime nodded, "Thank you, Ura. You know, I don't think I ever thanked you enough for coming out here with me. You could've stayed away, like everyone else."

Otohime reached out to lace their fingers together. Urashima drew away.

"Milady, you know how I hate my hands. They are not worthy of your touch."

Otohime pouted, "Well, I like your hands! They're comforting! Can I hold them if you keep the gloves on?"

Urashima nodded. That made Otohime incredibly happy, so she took his hands and smiled. She brought one of his hands up to cup her cheek.

"Hey, Ura. If you're ever nervous about anything, you'd tell me, right?"

Urashima hesitated, "It depends. I will say, though, I am nervous about the same things you are. I am incredibly nervous about my position. Before, the only thing I had to worry about was you. Now, there are others. I like these people, and I want to keep them safe, but I am always awake at night. I am afraid for the day that I have to choose between them and you."

"Well, I know you'll do what's right," Otohime pouted, "And I feel like I can protect myself, thank you very much!"

Urashima snorted, "If that were the case, then you wouldn't be losing your weapon so much."

It should be noted that Otohime had gotten her bisento stuck in monsters ten times over the last three weeks. Suffice to say, her new katana had gotten fast-tracked on Welf's to-do list.

Otohime decided to be the mature one then and left Urashima to tend to his garden. Urashima proceeded to do so for another thirty minutes before he heard Haruhime come outside to call him in.

They had some last-minute food to keep their energy up, and then they were out the door. The food was light, but it was cooked by Mikoto, so it was delicious. The familia's bellies were full before they started making their way to the Dungeon. Orario was only just beginning to wake up when they found their way to the Tower of Babel atop the Dungeon. Before they went inside, Lily signalled for them to stop.

"Today, the formation is as follows. Mister Urashima and Lady Otohime will be in the vanguard. Behind them will be Master Bell and Mister Welf, followed by Miss Mikoto supporting them. Me and Lady Haruhime will be right behind as supporters, with Elwin as our backline mage. Miss Ryuu will be our rearguard. Lily doesn't want to see anyone running on ahead, understood Master Bell and Lady Otohime?"

The two named adventurers had the decency to blush while they nodded. Everyone else smirked at the image of the little prum scolding these two powerful adventurers. With that warning in place, the adventurers took up formation and made their way inside.

The first thirteen floors were child's play. The next five floors got slightly more difficult as they tackled the Great Cave Labyrinth. Only slightly, though, as the newest members of Hestia Familia had taken to adventuring like fish to water. Otohime and Urashima had spent little time fighting monsters in their homeland, but they grew accustomed to it quickly enough. Meanwhile, Elwin had used monsters for practice in his days with Hecate Familia. That said, his current set of spells were not so combat-oriented. Today, his role was as a healer and a supporter. If they needed magical firepower, they had Crozzo Swords, Mikoto, and Ryuu.

There was only one stop on their way through the cave labyrinth. It was a tremendously special occasion. It was the first time Otohime, Urashima, and Elwin had run into the rabbit known as Al-Miraj. Urashima had gone ahead to scout when he called for the rest of the party. They rushed to join him, thinking he was in danger and met him restraining one of the white rabbits.

Everyone was confused as to why he had stopped when Urashima, totally serious, asked, "I was going to ask Master Bell why he had family down in the dungeon."

It took all of five seconds before Welf cracked. Soon he was bent over laughing with Lily. Haruhime giggled into her maiden robes while Mikoto chuckled. Even Ryuu cracked a smile. The other two new members caught onto the joke quick enough. Soon Elwin and Otohime had joined Welf and Lily, howling with laughter. Hestia Familia's poor captain was not as amused.

"That is not my family! They're called Al-Miraj, and they are very dangerous!" exclaimed the young red-faced captain. It did not matter who it was; they all made the same joke about the bunnies and the Rabbit Foot.

After Hestia Familia had their fill of laughter, they resumed their journey through the Dungeon. Every once in a while, they ran into minotaurs. Bell made a particular point of taking the bull-beasts on; he imagined it was his greatest rival every time he did. It took a couple of hours before they reached floor eighteen. They took a light break then, eating an early lunch in the woods by a river. It was during their break that Bell started feeling eyes watching him. He looked around, but he saw nothing.

Urashima and Otohime were the next to feel eyes on the party; both used to be stalked from their political intrigue days. One by one, the rest of the Hestia Familia felt similar sets of eyes on them. They ignored the watchers for the time being and instead chose to press onward. Bell had a feeling that the watchers were not hostile.

It was then that they made their way into the Great Tree Labyrinth. The party's formation shifted slightly then. Welf moved back due to his lack of abnormal resistance ability, while Mikoto and Bell moved forward.

Something curious happened then, and it made Otohime very happy. This time around, Urashima was the one getting distracted in the Dungeon. All the beautiful species of plants had him mesmerized, which left him vulnerable to monsters. This meant that it was Otohime's turn to watch his back. Her bisento verily vibrated with the joy she felt. Even when Lily scolded Urashima for getting distracted and picking flowers, Otohime always added to the end of the scolding that she was happy to watch his back. Otohime also commented that he was so cute with his flower picking. Urashima was a dark red for most of the trip.

They slowed down a lot in the Tree Labyrinth. Lily wanted to make sure that everyone understood the dangers that they faced. Eventually, Elwin had to step forward as a pack of bugbears surprised their rearguard. While Ryuu faced them down, Elwin started to chant.

"Great sea-goat, strong and resolute. I do beseech thee to lend me thine strength. Rush forward to create a path for my allies and part my enemies. I name thee Capricorn: ariedesu irrue!"

His magic took the form of a shining horned goat that ran forward, battering aside their enemies. The spell staggered the bugbears, allowing Mikoto and Urashima to slip back and assist Ryuu. Between their swords and knives, they had the monsters destroyed in minutes. In the front, Otohime and Bell were taking care of a swarm of Mad Beetles when Welf ordered them out of the way.

"Kazuchi!" screamed the smith, swinging his magic sword down. The hallway was engulfed in flames, and the monsters were obliterated. In the aftermath of the battle, the party had stopped to rest. Haruhime bustled about handing out potions while Lily went to work on the monster corpses. The prum was quick with her hands as she cut open monsters to retrieve their stones. Also, Bell was adventuring with them, which meant a bounty of drop items.

"The monsters certainly attack more down here," commented Elwin. Urashima grunted in agreement.

"This is the first true test for you as adventurers. Down here, your brain and spatial awareness become as important as your status," replied Ryuu. Serving as the rearguard, she had seen little action, but the battle with the bugbears was a good reminder that she was still a top tier adventurer with more experience than the rest of them put together.

"It's not just that they attack more, but there's a lot of status effects too," added Otohime, "I can see why Abnormal Resistance is important down here. Do we have enough antidote for today and tomorrow?"

Lily nodded, a smug grin on her face, "But of course! Lily is always one step ahead of the program! Not only do we have Miss Nahza's special poison curing potions, but we have also brought Mister Urashima's potion toolkit."

Otohime started smiling, "Oh, then we'll be ok!"

"Lady Otohime, your trust is misguided," replied Urashima.

"And you need more confidence, Sir Urashima," added Mikoto.

Welf nodded in agreement. While the others kept talking, Bell walked off by himself. He was looking down the tunnel, the familiar presence of being watched still hanging in the air.

Haruhime walked up to join them, "You have been feeling it as well, Master Bell?"

Bell nodded.

"I think we both know who's watching us," added Haruhime.

Bell nodded but made a point of not looking Haruhime in the eye. He changed that when he felt her tail wrap around his arm. He looked to her face to find her smiling.

"I'm sure they're doing fine; in fact, I'm sure we'll see how they're doing faster than we expect."

Bell sighed, "I hope you're right, Haruhime."

Haruhime gave Bell a knowing grin, "Have a little faith in me please, Master Bell."

Sometimes Bell was reminded that there were other ways to grow than just through martial prowess. Haruhime had gained a lot of confidence in the past year. Going home seemed to help her break the last chains of her past.

They rejoined their familia to find everyone in a joking argument. They melted into the conversation like they hadn't just had their own separate discussion. It was only a couple minutes after that that Hestia Familia resumed their march to floor twenty-four. They ran afoul of a bloody hive at one point and had to pause again to clean the mucus off; Urashima worried about what it would do to his weapons. Then they came face to face with a stampede of battle boars. Otohime took the opportunity to let loose and use her full potential. Urashima joined in with his daggers, cutting monsters in half as they came.

When they reached floor twenty-two, a gang of ogres attacked. Ryuu whipped forward, slamming her wooden blade into her enemies. With her enhanced strength, her sword crushed lungs and blew in skulls. Welf rushed to compliment her with his magic blade. His flames were pinpoint, hitting the spaces that Ryuu couldn't reach. Their time together in the Kingdom of Magic and their bond as the older sibling figures of the Familia had forged a strong friendship between them. Ryuu was quite proud of the fact that she had become friends with a Crozzo of all people.

After those constant battles, there was a lull in combat. That only made the group more nervous. When they reached the room right before the staircase down to floor twenty-four, they came face to face with the reason for the eerie silence; a green dragon was hunched in the middle of the room. When it breathed, smoke poured out of its nose. The moss-covered walls were singed by the heat that it gave off. Hestia Familia stood around in shock at their misfortune. This beast had the potential of a level four adventurer. It was not that the dragon was a dangerous opponent, but it was unlikely that the familia would escape unscathed. They had been trying to avoid a severe injury all day, but that plan had to be scrapped. Before Lily could issue a battle formation, Otohime lost it.

The ex-princess loosed a shrieking battle cry as she launched herself at the monster. People shouted for her to back off, but she didn't hear them. All she heard was the blood pounding in her ears. Her bisento carved deadly arcs as it laid into the dragon. Gouge marks began appearing on the dragon, blood dripping onto the floor.

However, Otohime did not escape harm. She earned a deep cut on her right arm for her efforts, claw marks across her abdomen, and a chunk of flesh missing from her left shoulder. Urashima was about to jump in when Lily started barking orders.

"Miss Ryuu, Master Bell, Mister Urashima, please deal with the approaching gun libellula!" she said.

Urashima looked back to find a swarm of large dragonfly-like creatures buzzing towards them. Only Ryuu, Bell, and Urashima stood a chance of fighting back with that kind of speed. As Urashima ducked towards the insects, he heard Lily begin issuing more orders.

"Miss Mikoto, begin magic chanting, focus on the beast in front! That dragon is not allowed to take off! Mister Welf, support Lady Otohime with your magic swords. Lady Haruhime, please begin casting magic for Lily, Miss Mikoto, Mister Urashima, Mister Welf, and Mister Elwin. Mister Elwin, you will be protecting Lily and Lady Haruhime. Does everyone understand?"

"Understood!" came the cries of the familia.

Like a well-oiled machine, they came together and fought as one. Haruhime and Mikoto began chanting while Elwin took up a defensive position in front of the two supporters. Welf started unloading his magic sword whenever he saw the dragon begin to breathe fire. Since his new magic blades took their power from his magic status, he could feel his mind drain quickly. Trying to match the flames of a dragon required a lot of magical energy.

Urashima joined battle with Ryuu and Bell. His moves melded with the boy and the elf's. His daggers created a tempest of death as he whirled and sliced. His arms grew heavy under the strain of so much combat, but these hands that he detested were able to bear the brunt of many attacks. He also knew that whatever he lacked, Ryuu and Bell would be there to support him.

While this Familia appeared to work together perfectly, there was one problem. Otohime was lost in her rage against the dragon. It was a dragon that had ruined her life. These beasts were cruel and wild animals. Otohime despised these types of creatures.

She did not notice the rest of her Familia finish their battles. Haruhime's level-boosting magic helped her Familia make quick work of the dragonflies, and Mikoto's magic quickly restricted the green dragon. The beast had been pinned, dead for one hundred heartbeats. Otohime overlooked that, though. Her only thought was to beat in the dragon's skull, again and again. A dragon had ruined her life before; she would not let a dragon do it again.

She kept stabbing and only stopped when someone had grabbed her shoulders. She whirled around to find Urashima holding her steady.

Otohime felt tears start to fall and grappled herself into Urashima's chest, saying that she hated dragons and that a dragon ruined her life. While Urashima led her off to the side to calm her down, the rest of the familia gathered to make sure there were no more monsters. That did not stop them from looking over to their beloved princess, though.

"Hey, when she says a dragon ruined her life…you don't think?" asked Welf.

Lily nodded, "Lily thinks that's exactly what she means."

Ryuu sighed, "That poor girl, I sympathize with her."

Bell nodded, "Maybe so, but I don't want anyone bringing it up right now. Lily, I think Otohime should take up Elwin's position for the rest of the day."

"Lily agrees with Master Bell. Mister Elwin, please move up to join Welf in support. Miss Mikoto, you are to join the vanguard with Mister Urashima," said Lily.

Ryuu shook her head, "I do not think that Urashima will want to separate from Lady Otohime for a while now."

"No, that is ok. However, I do agree that Lady Otohime should pull back," replied Urashima. Otohime trailed behind him, holding her shoulders. Her body was trembling.

Otohime mumbled out an apology, but no one held her actions against her. They knew her past. The rest of the Familia just pulled their gear together and went further into the Dungeon. Thankfully, there were no other significant hurdles when they reached the twenty-fourth floor. Eventually, they came to the same room they had used on their first expedition over a year ago.

As they made camp, tasks were split equally among the lot of them. Mikoto got to work on making dinner, Haruhime and Lily started checking on everyone's wounds, Welf put up tents, and Ryuu started cutting moss from the walls. Otohime was still catatonic, so she sat alone. Urashima took up a position near her, mixing ingredients for a calming potion and some antidotes. That left Elwin and Bell to guard the entrance to their camp.

"How are you doing, Elwin?" asked Bell.

Elwin shrugged, "Can't complain, really. I mean, things are going a little slower than I liked…but that's to be expected right now. I mean, I still haven't worked up the courage to talk to…you know who…"

Bell nodded, "I know, but…well…" Bell struggled to find the words that a Captain should know.

Elwin chuckled, "I know. We'll be working with Loki Familia soon, so I'll be running into her a fair amount," the half-elf shrugged, "I'll be ok."

Elwin played with the cap that covered his hair a bit more before returning to the rest of the Familia to help Welf. Eventually, Mikoto called for dinner. Ryuu swapped places with Bell, and he was able to sit down and eat. They made idle chatter, and Otohime came back to them. Soon, she was back to her usual chipper attitude.

After dinner, Hestia Familia settled in for bed. Mikoto and Haruhime were on guard duty when they finally got the meeting Haruhime had been expecting. It only took a couple of seconds, but the poor fox girl had been knocked over by a body in a cloak. The renard felt hot tears rub against her cheek and heard the flapping of wings.

"Haruhime! Haruhime!"

Wiene just kept repeating her name, over and over again. In response, Haruhime grappled with the Vouivre, unable to speak. Then a rumbling laugh came down the tunnel, and a Lizardman wearing the armour of an adventurer came with it. The rest of the Familia was up quickly, weapons in hand. Their battle stances didn't last long before Bell put away his knife. Then he was running at the Lizardman.

They came together with clasped hands.

"Bellichi!"

"Lyd!"

The adventurer and the monster laughed together, and more Xenos came through the tunnel. There was Lett the goblin who bounded over to chat with Welf and Lily. Fia the harpy reunited with her former dance partner, Mikoto and talked her ear off about the previous year. Finally, a skeleton in a black robe came through the tunnel.

"Bell Cranel has returned!" said Fels. Though he didn't have a face, it just felt like he was smiling.

Ryuu, and the new members, stood around awkwardly. They weren't entirely comfortable with the Xenos yet, but that didn't stop the monsters from bringing them into the conversation. Thankfully, Otohime was Otohime. She empathized with these monster people. The ex-princess was quick to make friends with the Xenos. Urashima followed, and eventually, even Elwin and Ryuu were drawn into the celebration.

They settled into a circle and restarted the fire. Everyone had ale in their hands, or claws, as the Xenos explained what had been going on.

"So, you were watching us!" exclaimed Bell.

"Mhm," replied Wiene, who had latched onto Bell's arm, deep in cuddling mode, "We wanted to say hi earlier, but Fels kept telling us to wait."

The dragon girl pouted at the skeleton.

"Hey, I told you that I thought it was a bad idea. I could feel it in my bones!"

That got a groan from almost everyone. Except for Elwin, he laughed at every one of Fels's jokes. The two were sure to become fast friends.

"Fels advised us to wait until nightfall to say hi, so here we are!" added Lyd.

"Mister Lyd, I was wondering, how are things going right now? What's the situation been like since Freya Familia…" asked Ryuu.

Lyd scratched the back of his lizard head, "Well, Ryuumichi…. we've rebuilt what we can, but things have gotten difficult down here…"

"Ryuumichi?"

"What do you mean things have gotten difficult?" asked Bell in the confused elf's place.

"New Xenos have appeared, and they're unhappy, to say the least," replied Lyd.

"Anything we can do to help?" asked Bell.

Lyd shook his head, "For now, no. This is a Xenos problem, and we must try and fix it ourselves. Besides, it's always like this with new Xenos. They're young, and they still have to learn what it means to live down here."

"How do you usually deal with your new recruits?" asked Welf.

"Well, Gros usually dealt with them," replied Lyd.

An awkward silence settled on the group; the party mood vanished. Wiene saw that Bell grew melancholic and gave his arm a squeeze.

When no one had spoken for several minutes, Urashima decided that was enough. He hated silence; he had grown up with the damn thing. He was done with it.

"So, these new Xenos are angry about adventurers? Because of what happened? So, I'm guessing that if we joined the situation, things would get much worse?" asked Urashima.

"That's right, Urashicchi," replied Lyd, "But enough about all that depressing stuff. Let's talk about what's been happening with you guys!"

After that, conversations split into groups. Eventually, Bell found himself talking with Fels and Wiene. Wiene was there mostly because she refused to let go of Bell. She had gotten stronger in the last year, her grip was almost crushing, and Bell knew that he was gonna have a set of bruises tomorrow morning. Bell asked the question that had been on his mind since he had gotten back.

"Fels, why did you make those level-up orbs?"

The skeleton chuckled, "Well, for the most part, it's because of Freya."

"I hate Freya!" proclaimed Wiene.

Fels nodded, "We all do. Which is why I worked so hard to make those things."

Wiene brightened, "Yeah yeah, Bell! Look at this!"

Wiene brought her arm up to show some sort of band that glowed, "This thing harvests excelia from monsters!"

Fels nodded, "A one-of-a-kind device of my own making," there was a hint of pride in his voice, "This is the instrument that harvests excelia from monsters from their magic stones. Hooked up to the Xenos, it works to compress their strength and magic. Then, after months of pressure, the compressed Excelia hardens into the level up orbs. The adventurers just have to swallow the things, like an egg."

"Is it dangerous for them?" asked Bell.

"Who, the adventurers or the Xenos?" replied Fels.

"Both."

"For the adventurers, only if they take more than one. Which is why we banned winners from re-entering the tournament," explained Fels.

"What happens if they take more than one?"

Fels brought his finger bones to his skull, "Well, the working theory is that they would burn up from the inside. They'd probably end up looking a lot like me."

Bell paled, "Any other side effects to know about?"

"Nothing worth mentioning, but remember, in your lifetime, you will only be able to take one. Well, not you, actually. You're too strong for them to work," replied Fels.

"Eh?" said Bell.

"The process to harvest excelia is too inefficient to work on anyone above level four. And it's too powerful to work on anyone less than level two. A level one would probably burn up as well." explained Fels.

"So, what about for the Xenos?" asked Bell.

Fels waved a hand, "No problems whatsoever. These machines are one hundred percent safe for Xenos. Actually, they can only be used by them," the skeleton held up a finger, "That's part of the plan, actually. As Orario becomes accustomed to the orbs and grateful to their existence, they'll be more inclined to let the Xenos do as they please. Quite the beautiful business deal, no? The idea had been knocking around my skull for a while, actually! The real issue is how much it requires from me! I'm being worked to the bone!"

Bell allowed a pause of awkward silence to follow, then he nodded and then looked at Wiene, "Wiene, is it ok if I speak to Fels alone?"

Wiene pouted but agreed. She left to go talk to Haruhime.

"Fels, has Freya been back down here yet?" asked Bell.

Fels shook his head, "After what she did, Ouranus made it very clear that she was on thin ice. Her Familia is still paying fines, working with restrictions and supervisions, and they aren't allowed past floor thirty-four."

Bell let out a breath of relief, "And this thing with the new Xenos? How is that actually going? Is there anything I can do to help? Please, I'll do anything to help Fels. I have to make it up to them for bringing Freya down here."

Bell's guilt was tremendous. The entire year he had been grappling with the fact that since the Xenos had hidden him, it had put them in the path of Freya Familia and their hunt. Most nights, he woke up from nightmares of what they did to Gros and Ray.

"Bell Cranel, what happened to you was the result of mad deities and sycophantic followers. It was something that happened because of a dark obsession. What that monster of a goddess did was not your fault. And don't you dare think the Xenos blame you. Lyd, Wiene, and many others are still proud of the fact that they were able to help you," said Fels. He opened his arms, "If you are looking for something to do, get stronger. Get stronger so that you can beat that Goddess of beauty. Get stronger so that you can help the Xenos realize their dreams."

Bell nodded, "I will, Fels, I promise."

With that, the boy reaffirmed his dreams.

Chapter Text

That night, the Xenos left soon after Bell and Fels's conversation. Hestia Familia had to wake up early the next day to have enough time to both explore the twenty-fourth floor and return home for dinner. The twenty-fourth didn't hold much excitement, though. There were the usual monsters, with the only difference being that they ran into a Moss Huge this time. The damn thing led them on a merry chase, and Welf was not happy to participate.

The smith had things to do and materials to work with. He had finally made enough progress in his return to-do list that he had the time to work on Otohime's new sword. He also hadn't gone to see Hephaistos yet. That was only partially because of the work though, really, he was a bit of a coward. However, he was confident enough in himself to admit that he was acting cowardly.

When they finally defeated the Moss Huge, which was mostly possible through his magic swords, they started to make their way home at a quick pace. He was quite proud of the fact that his swords were saving the lives of his companions. He was also happy to see that the magic wind sword he had crafted for Ryuu was working as planned. Made from mithril, it functioned like other magic swords and allowed her to use her mind for the wind magic, just like his Kazuchi. She was already a powerful mage, so pouring even a little bit of her mind into the blade gave incredible magical ability. When they paused for lunch on floor twenty, he went to check on her and her weaponry.

"So Ryuu, how's the blade holding up?" asked the smith.

Ryuu nodded, a tiny smile gracing her features, "It's quite the beautiful blade, and it works wonders. It's nice to not have to worry about a magic blade breaking or to worry about the time it takes to chant my magic," Ryuu smirked then, "I'll admit though, as an elf, it's strange to use a Crozzo blade."

Welf snorted, "Ain't that the truth. I imagine if we really did start working with Loki Familia; you'd turn a couple heads, to say the least."

Ryuu shrugged, "If they have a problem, then it's theirs. If using this blade means keeping all of you safe, then I'd use it a thousand times."

That got Welf to smile, "I got to say, I like the sound of that. Let me know if there's anything else I can do for you. How's the armour, by the way?"

That got Ryuu to lift her arms and examine them in the light of the cave moss, "I'm not dead yet, so I imagine that means that it's working. Can't ask for much else."

Welf nodded, "Like the attitude."

"Anything else you want to ask?"

"Yeah, now that you've met them properly… what'd you think of the Xenos?"

Ryuu stopped talking then. Anyone who didn't know her would think she was refusing to answer. However, Welf had travelled with the elf. He knew that she was just taking her time and putting in enough thought for a proper answer. After a minute, Ryuu shrugged.

"Honestly, they're just like you guys said they would be. They seem like good people…monsters…creatures. I like them," said Ryuu.

Welf nodded, "Happy to hear it. Knowing Bell, we're gonna come back here and help them later."

Ryuu chuckled, "Yes, Bell is quite heroic that way, isn't he?"

"Oh, come on, you like that side of him, don't you?"

Ryuu turned scarlet then. Instead of responding, she stood up and started giving orders to begin their march to the surface. The rest of the party was confused by their vice-captain's sudden outburst of orders, except for Welf.

Instead, the smith said, "Man, she is way too easy."

Regardless, the Familia made their way back up through the dungeon. They worked quickly and efficiently, their moves becoming more in-sync as they fought their way through the dungeon. They passed through the eighteenth floor with barely a hello to Bors, and soon they were rushing up the upper floors. It took no time at all with their levels and skills.

Coming back out into the daylight, the group split up to accomplish their tasks. Rather, that was the plan. As soon as they stepped into the guild lobby, a familiar voice called out for their captain.

"Bell Cranel!"

It was the captain of the Loki Familia, the Braver: Finn Diemne. The prum strolled up to Hestia Familia, as calm as could be. He was by himself, without a weapon. Not that it mattered, though. After the great battle in Knossos, the Gods saw fit to recognize Finn's incredible role as the leader of the allied forces of Orario. For his bravery, tenacity, and leadership, he was granted a level-up. Finn Diemne, the hero of the Prums, was a level seven.

"Mister Finn!" replied Bell. He hadn't seen the prum since he had returned. In fact, besides the one moment on the wall, he hadn't seen anyone from Loki Familia. He was stunned into silence.

"What can we do for you, Mister Finn?" asked Lily. She noticed Bell's state in decided it was her job as his supporter to step in.

"Actually, the one I want to talk to is you, Lilliruka Arde. Would you be available for a conversation? I figured now that you're back, it would be a good chance for me to offer myself for marriage again," replied Finn.

He said marriage, but Lily noticed the way his lips curled. She nodded to the prum and gave her pack to Mikoto.

"Miss Mikoto, would you please go with Lady Haruhime to sell our magic stones. I have to go with Mister Finn to review…. marriage proposals," said Lily. She walked away with the captain of Loki Familia. Mikoto and Haruhime went to sell their stones, Bell went to talk to Eina and Ryuu took the new members of the Familia home. That left Welf with little to do. So, he decided to have that conversation that was long overdue.

As Welf made his way to the home of arguably the city's wealthiest Familia, he reflected on his time away. He had travelled under Lady Hephaistos's advice to study under the God of craftsman, Ptah, who taught him much. His work became more intricate, his creations gained complexity, and he learned a lot about the nature of magic weapons.

The Kingdom of Carien, where Ptah resided, was a great place of magic and science. Not only to Ptah but to Hecate and Iris, Goddesses of Magic. There were several other Gods and Goddesses, all focused on crafts and creation. Travelling with Ryuu was a good time as well. She had just become a member of their Familia, which meant it was the perfect time to get to know each other. The elf was a treasure trove of stories and wildly loyal. She made good company.

Welf was jerked out of his reminiscing, though, because he had arrived at his destination. The home of Hephaistos Familia towered over him, large and imposing. He walked inside and found a gaggle of smiths running back and forth. He had no idea who to talk to, to find Hephaistos, but then his least favourite smith saw him loitering in the lobby.

"Welfy!" cried out Tsubaki, "I was wondering when you'd finally get enough courage to come and visit!"

Tsubaki took his arm with her monster strength and dragged him through the house. Welf's former home was familiar but also frighteningly different. Furniture had been moved, people had joined, and the sounds of smiths at work had changed to his ears.

Eventually, they came to the office at the top of the home. Welf could feel the intense heat of the forge from behind the door. Tsubaki walked up and gave it a knock. Before the Goddess came to the door, Tsubaki nudged Welf.

"She's been expecting you, you know. When you didn't show up for the first couple of weeks, she almost threw a fit. I had to bring in Hestia to talk to her. I swear, you almost brought on a major bout of depression with your cowardice," said Tsubaki.

"Why are you telling me this?" replied Welf.

"Just warning you for what comes next," said Tsubaki.

The door cracked open, and Welf was face to face with his former Goddess. A year away had not dulled her beauty, and Welf felt his breath hitch when he saw her. Her one good eye popped open when they made eye contact. She looked at Tsubaki, looked back at Welf, and then dragged the young man inside. Hephaistos shut the door before Tsubaki could come in. Before Welf could open his mouth, Hephaistos grabbed him by his shoulders. She crashed her lips to his. The kiss was ugly, but Welf felt the passion behind it. After holding him there for ten seconds, she released him. Welf blinked a couple of times while Hephaistos returned to her desk. Her moves were jerky, as if she had more energy than she knew what to do with.

She sat behind the desk, her face as red as her hair. She took a couple of deep breaths, working to bring down the adrenaline. After a minute, she finally seemed to compose herself. Welf was left standing around like a dying fish.

"It is good to see you, Welf. I hope you'll excuse what just happened," said the Goddess.

"Excuse me, Lady Hephaistos, but what?" replied the smith.

Hephaistos blushed, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Even a thick head like Welf could read the room. Instead of trying to continue the conversation, he shook his and scratched the back of his neck.

"Alright, we can ignore that for now then. I don't have the time I want right now, so how about we continue this conversation a couple days from now? We can go get dinner," replied the smith. Hephaistos blushed even deeper in response and nodded. The two tried to have a normal conversation, but it obviously wasn't going to happen. After a particularly awkward silence, Welf told her he was leaving, and she nodded again. She didn't trust herself to speak. He left to go home.

At the same time, Lily and Finn settled in at a café made especially for prums. The small chairs and tables were perfect for the two of them. They sat across from each other, ordering tea and biscuits. Lily was apprehensive about spending money, but Finn said that he would foot the bill. The two of them exchanged pleasantries for a while, and the one time that Lily tried to talk about what Finn really wanted to talk about, he raised his hand to pause. Apparently, they were waiting on someone else. Eventually, an amazon came barging in to join them. She seemed distinctly out of place in the tiny space, but that didn't stop her. Lily recognized her as Tione, one of Loki Familia's executives and she didn't stop glaring at Lily.

"I must apologize, but is there something wrong, Miss Tione?" asked Lily.

"Tione, we talked about this," replied Finn.

Immediately, Tione pouted and nodded. Her glare relaxed, and she fidgeted in the too-small chair she was sitting in. Finn looked on fondly before turning back to Lily.

"So, Miss Arde, I have to say it has been a long while. Let me start with an apology for what happened a year ago. All of us in Loki Familia feel awful about our part in what happened to your familia and to the Xenos," said Finn, his face sombre. His voice was stiff and formal in contrast, though.

Before Lily could respond, Tione added on, "We really are. I know the captain isn't great at sounding sincere, but I can tell you that we all feel awful about the Xenos. When we heard about Ray…she saved Finn's life," Tione sighed, "What I'm trying to say is, and I know an apology doesn't cut it, but we're sorry." Her voice was much more sincere in intent.

Lily didn't respond for a minute. She sat here in contemplative silence, looking down at the floor. Finally, she said, "Is that all you wanted to talk about, Mister Finn? Worthless apologies?" The prum was shaking, "We saw the Xenos last night, in the dungeon. They're still recovering. All because you turned your back on us."

"Not our choice," retorted Tione, "That's on Ais." She obviously did not like anyone attacking her Captain, even if she sympathized with Lily.

"Enough, Tione," said Finn, voice firm. He breathed out, "I'm not here for just apologies; I'm here to help. You're too smart to not have a plan, so what is it, and what can my Familia do to help?"

Lily was taken back by the admission. She was partly relieved for the help and part angry that they only decided to help now after the worst damage had been done. No time for that though, Lily had a family to protect.

"Well, for now, the plan is to buy time until we can get to a place of strength. We're trying to win that big tournament coming up to gain some reputation. Lily believes that if we stay too much in the public eye, Freya won't have a chance to attack us. Her reputation already hangs by a thread. Even the guild hasn't forgiven her yet. That said, we are also looking to form alliances with bigger Familias. Lily knows that you aren't one to form plans in the daylight, but…" Lily trailed off.

"I heard you're going on an expedition. Ais and Lefiya are offering their services to go with you," replied Finn, "I also think that Tione and Tiona want to help you with your training for this tournament. Also, how about me and you start having regular meetings about what our Familia's can do to help each other." His list came quickly; it was rattled off so fast that Lily suspected he had practiced it beforehand.

Lily didn't know how to respond to that, though. The amount of help that Finn was offering was almost overwhelming. Before she could react, Finn spoke up again, "The reputation idea wasn't a bad one, but it would only work with a goddess that isn't Freya. She has never cared about her reputation. The only reason she hasn't attacked yet is because of her whims. You need to get stronger, now."

Lily nodded. Thank God that the Braver was here and could help her familia make a proper plan. She had been struggling on her own.

Lily and Finn set to work, making plans for what to do next. Tione chimed in, helping by offering a more down-to-earth view of things. Many projects were set to work, and overall, it was quite a pleasant way to spend the day for Lily. When she wasn't trying to glare a hole through her head, Tione was good company. After a couple of hours had passed, the three of them retired for the day. They left to go home to their respective Familias.

When Lily got home, she found her Familia taking a break post-expedition. Hestia hadn't finished work yet, but the rest were having fun. Welf and Urashima were sketching out weapon ideas, mostly creating totally unrealistic and impractical monstrosities. They were having a good laugh, though. Otohime was playing shogi with Mikoto while Haruhime watched. Elwin and Ryuu were deep in conversation about magic, and Bell was trying to start a fire.

Lily went over to Bell, thinking that he deserved to know about her meeting with Finn first. She knelt down to him and helped get the logs in order. They worked in silence, not needing to communicate. Eventually, he got the fire started with a light fireball, and the two of them left for the office. Ryuu peeled off to join them, understanding the importance of the matter. The three of them took seats in the office, Lily behind the desk, Bell in the chair in front, and Ryuu leaning against the wall. Lily took out their finance books so she could work while they talked. They had made a fair chunk of valis over the last three weeks, but they would need to save it all for this big expedition they were planning. Especially if the Sword Princess and Thousand Elf were joining them.

"Good news. Mister Finn is looking to set up a direct alliance between Hestia Familia and Loki Familia. He offered the services of Miss Tiona and Miss Tione to help train us," Lily looked to Ryuu, "I told him that their time would be best spent with Miss Mikoto and Mister Urashima."

Ryuu nodded, "Understood, they can have Mikoto in the evenings. I still want her training with me and the Hostess of Fertility girls in the morning. Urashima can join her. What else?"

Lily smiled, "Mister Finn offered to personally train me in the art of war and strategy. I'm going to begin taking meetings with him. Also, he suggested we scrap the reputation plan. It's more important that we focus on getting stronger. That said, nothing changes for this tournament."

Bell nodded, "Understood. I'll have to tell Mister Finn how grateful I am. Did he mention anyone else?"

Lily knew exactly what he was asking. He had been jostling his leg since the meeting began. She decided to put the poor boy at ease, "Miss Ais and Miss Lefiya both volunteered to come with us on our upcoming expedition. Adding them with the members from Miach Familia, Takemikazuchi Familia, and Miss Aisha, who is probably going to force her way in, and we have quite the fighting force."

Ryuu smirked at the remark, but Bell did not seem so happy about the circumstances. That surprised Lily; she thought that Bell would be delighted at the chance to work with his idol. Before she could pursue that line of thought any further, Hestia poked her head in.

"Time for status updates, you three! I'm doing Otohime first, but then the rest of you. Little Miss Supporter? You can go last and fill me in on what you were discussing," said Hestia before ducking back outside. The others followed her to line up outside her room. Otohime was practically bouncing next to the door. It was her first status update in Orario. Right behind her was Urashima and Elwin, also visibly excited.

Hestia walked inside, and Otohime followed. Before the door shut, there was an audible thunk and a yelp from Otohime.

"That's what you get for charging a green dragon without backup!" came the voice of the Goddess. Apparently, she had heard about that.

A couple minutes later, Otohime came bouncing out of the room, waving her status sheet around.

"Seventy-five points! I went up by a whole seventy-five points!"

Urashima and Elwin stood there slack-jawed. Growing up outside Orario, they were used to slow, meticulous growth. To hear of someone growing by that much did not make sense to them. That said, Otohime, in particular, was because she was always throwing herself into the way of danger.

One by one, the other members went through. Urashima and Welf had similar results, and Elwin had grown the same over three works. Haruhime was lower because of the supporter role. Ryuu had almost none because the monsters they had been facing did nothing for a level five adventurer. The last three were Mikoto, Bell, and Lily. Mikoto went inside next. There was a minute of quiet before both women inside let out screams of surprise. Mikoto walked out her face in shock.

"What is it, what is it?" asked Otohime.

Mikoto handed her paper over.

Mikoto Yamato

Level Two

Strength: C 769 – 799 Defense: C 751 – 781 Dexterity: B 850 - 880 Agility: C 771 – 796 Magic: E 538 – 548 Abnormal Resistance: G

"Holy shit, Mikoto went up by one hundred and twenty-five!" said Welf.

"In three weeks? No way," replied Urashima.

Ryuu tilted her head, "She has been fighting adventurers double her level for weeks now. It makes sense to me."

Welf scratched his head, "Still though. These are the kind of numbers I'd expect from Bell…"

"Does Captain Bell usually grow a lot?" asked Otohime, switching to a teasing honorific. Bell didn't take the bait.

The old members all nodded. Hestia waved Bell inside and gave him his status update. When he came out, though…

"Only seventy-five points of growth. That's only as much as the rest of us, though…" said Welf, thinking about Bell's expected growth.

"Still much more than me though," replied Ryuu, the other level five.

Hestia stood at the door, "Hey, why don't you lot go and celebrate the mini-expeditions success at the Hostess tonight?" she tossed a bag of valis over, "Consider it a treat from your wonderful Goddess. Me and Miss Supporter will catch up when we're done."

Hestia walked back into her room, and Lily followed. She didn't bother lifting her shirt up, though. The first order of business wasn't actually updating her status.

"Lily takes it that Master Bell's skill still isn't working?"

Hestia sighed, "No, it's not. I thought that he had patched things up with Wallenwhatsherface, but I think he's still hurting."

"The Sword Princess's betrayal ran deep, and Lily agrees with the skill. Master Bell shouldn't trust her anymore!"

Hestia levelled a look at the tiny prum, "Your one to talk about betraying Bell, how did you two meet again?"

Lily didn't have a response to that one. Instead, she dodged the question, "Do you think he'll be ok?"

Hestia shrugged, "I'll try and talk to him, but in the end, I don't want to force him into forgiveness. That's not how it works. He has to want this. I won't be like Hermes."

Lily swallowed before saying, "Lily hates to be the one to say it, but we need Master Bell to keep growing. If he doesn't get any stronger soon, then Lady Freya will destroy us, Loki Familia or not."

Hestia outright glared at Lily, "I will not force Bell to forgive Ais Wallenstein. If he falls out of love, that's his choice, but I will not force him to that decision. If he's forced to forgive, then it's worthless," Hestia stopped glaring, tears forming in her eyes, "More importantly, he's my child. You don't think I see his pain every day? I wish I could do more, but I have to let Bell has to fix this himself."

Lily nodded, "Lily apologizes for her statement. Lily is just trying to make sure Goddess Hestia understands our situation. That said, Lily does have good news."

Lily explained her meeting with Finn. By the end of it, Hestia was scowling.

"Great, now I'm gonna end up owing that flat-chested Goddess," then Hestia sighed, "I guess it's for the best, though. If Bell doesn't find a way to work through his feelings; Finn is our best bet against Ottar."

Lily tilted her head, "Has it really been a year of Liaris Freese not working?"

Hestia nodded, "A little over a year now, actually. The damn skill is fueled by his feelings for the Sword Princess, and if he can't figure out how he feels; the skill can't get to work," Hestia stood up and threw back on her shawl, "No matter! Sad thoughts for different times! Now let's go get drunk with our Familia!"

"Goddess Hestia, you didn't update my status!" cried out the prum.

The Goddess retorted that she would do it later, and the two bickered all the way to the pub.

When they arrived, they heard arguing from the inside. They walked in to find their half-elf mage shouting at a poor lonely bard.

"And I'm telling you, you pompous, self-absorbed, music-Familia-reject, stop playing that melancholy shit!" screamed Elwin, wagging a finger at Dixen, "It ain't art, and it sure as shit doesn't make you sound any better! Whatever happened to a good old-fashioned drinking song, huh?" The half-elf's face was an inch away from Dixen's.

"You ask me, a learned artist, to debase himself with your frivolous debauchery? One wouldn't think you had elven blood running through your veins!" replied Dixen, just as red in the face as his opponent.

The rest of the pub was clearly amused by the turn of events. Even Mamma Mia was watching the spectacle in delight. The rest of Hestia Familia sat around the table in varying degrees of embarrassment. Except for Otohime, she was enjoying the food too much to notice.

Eventually, Dixen gave up, "Fine then, if you don't like my art, then you play the music!"

Dixen thrust his lute at Elwin.

"Gladly!"

Elwin took the lute and set it to make sure the pegs were in the right place. When everything was set up, the half-elf gave a roguish grin before launching into song.

"When I was young and in my prime

And could wander wild and free,

There was always a longing in my mind,

To follow the call of the sea."

It was an old drinking song from his time with Hecate Familia. His current Familia was just as familiar with it and soon joined in. The mage was skilled and had a clear voice. He also very much enjoyed what he sang. His enthusiasm was infectious, and soon the whole pub was up and singing with him. The waitresses were dancing together, and adventurers pounded on their tables while swinging their ale. Even Mamma Mia got in on the fun, grabbing a reluctant Ryuu and taking her for a dance.

When the song ended, a call went up for another. A whole hour passed this way, Elwin singing, waitresses dancing, and adventurers having much too much drink. When the night got later, though, some extraordinary guests arrived.

"Hey there, everybody!"

Tiona popped in, her sister not far behind. The rest of the Loki Familia executives followed suit. They all took the state of the bar in with a single look. At the center of it all were some old acquaintances and new allies.

The top-tier adventures walked to the table, inviting themselves to sit. Loki was first, sauntering up to her old rival.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Itty Bitty!" said Loki.

It took a second for Hestia to register that Loki was talking to her. Eventually, she looked up from the table and pointed at Loki before giggling. Then she said, "Hehehe, Loki, no bits!" before promptly passing out at the table.

Loki raged and made to smack the Goddess around a bit before Bete and Tione dragged her off to the bar. Gareth followed while he laughed. The rest of Loki Familia settled at the table. Finn started chatting with Lily, making plans for the future. Tiona and Otohime quickly decided that they were each other's missing half (of the brain, that is). Urashima was left alone to manage the two, while Welf laughed from the sidelines. Ryuu had been taken to the side by Helun/Syr. The two were deep in conversation. There might have been tears involved.

That left Ais, Bell, Lefiya, Riveria, and Elwin. Elwin's voice had grown hoarse, and he had given the lute back to Dixen. When he returned to the table, he noticed Riveria and Lefiya, and his eyes bugged out. Ais tugged on Bell's sleeve, who had managed to stay mostly sober, before gesturing outside. Bell looked nervous, but he nodded all the same. The two left, leaving Elwin with two famous elves.

Riveria broke the silence, "So you are the new mage?"

Elwin nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

Lefiya coughed before asking, "So, what magic do you use?"

"Oh well, ummm…" Elwin was nervous but definitely wanted to impress, "I use star sign spells…"

Lefiya tilted her head, "What are those?"

"My magic cycles through twelves spells, each pertaining to a different star sign," replied Elwin. He always hated talking about his magic; they always said the same thing.

"Oh, I don't think I've ever heard of an elven magic like that," replied Lefiya.

"It ain't elvish, so that's why," bit out Elwin. Lefiya shrunk away from his outburst. Riveria narrowed her eyes.

"Now, that was rude. I'm sure we'll all be working together soon, so we should all try to get along," said the high-elf.

Elwin snorted, "Yeah, figured you'd say something like that." The half-elf found his nervousness to be disappearing. Something much uglier was taking its place. He knew things would be complicated, but now that he was here, he was all twisted up.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Riveria, also growing quite annoyed with this conversation.

"Nothing that you'd care about, your highness," replied Elwin, his voice dripping malice. The ordinarily calm Riveria was blinking in surprise. Before she could respond, Lefiya slammed her hands on the table.

"Lady Riveria is royalty, in fact, and I do not appreciate the way you are treating her! She is the daughter of our king!"

Elwin stood to match the little elf girl, "Your king, not mine!" Elwin snorted, "Besides, you don't think I didn't already know that? Like I already didn't know everything there is to know about the great 'Nine Hells' Riveria? The hair's a bit of a giveaway, ain't it?" Elwin's human accent kept getting stronger.

Now, there were three factors at work at the moment, each making the situation worse. The first was that Elwin was hammered. Even though he drank less than the rest, it was still a considerable amount. His inhibitions had disappeared a long time ago. The second was that he had emotions that he had long repressed, bubbling to the surface. None of them were pleasant. Finally, he had not secured his cap as tightly as usual, which meant that it was coming loose in the mess. Elwin was one step from disaster before a friend stepped in.

"Hey, there, pal! Why don't we get you some food, huh?" asked Welf, very sober now. This was not a conversation that should happen drunk.

As the two walked away, Lefiya and Riveria were left in silence. Ryuu was quick to swoop in and smooth things over. She had apologized to Helun when she saw what was happening, but her priorities had changed.

"I apologize, Lady Riveria. My fellow Familia member is usually not so rude. He has had a…difficult childhood," said the vice-captain.

Lefiya stepped back, suddenly very abashed, and tried to remember her manners before asking, "What happened?"

Ryuu looked down, "He was born a half-elf, but he's only ever known his human mother. His father made it very clear that he'd rather not have him at all."

Riveria let out a humourless chuckle, "Not the finest moment for the great elven race, is it?"

Ryuu gave a sheepish nod. Then Riveria asked a question she shouldn't have.

"Why is he wearing that cap? We're inside. Not to mention, but that Crozzo boy was quick to try and pull it down. Is he disfigured on his head?"

Ryuu fidgeted in her seat, clearly uncomfortable. On the one hand was her loyalty to her race. If a high elf asked, she felt compelled to answer. On the other hand, it was her duty to her Familia. She was saved a decision by Hestia returning to semi-consciousness.

"Elwin hides his hair because it's full of secrets! Hehehe!" said the tiny Goddess before passing out again.

Riveria nodded, "I see then," then she looked around the bar, "I think I'm going to bed now. Thank you for your time."

Riveria left then, hoping to catch a good night's sleep. Something about the mage had left her deeply disturbed. When Elwin returned, he let out a deep breath of relief, then he grew red in the face.

He looked at Lefiya, "I'm sorry about that. You don't deserve that, especially with how you're helping us out."

Lefiya shook her head, "It's no problem. Sometimes we all have a bit too much to drink…I might be a bit guilty of that myself."

The half-elf sat next to the full blood and started answering questions about his particular magic.

"Wait, so you have access to twelve spells?"

"Yes, but not all at once. They rotate through my spell slots with every status update. I get them regularly from Goddess Hestia to make sure I'm properly equipped for the dungeon."

Lefiya's jaw dropped, "That's incredible, Mister Elwin!"

Elwin snorted before levelling a look over the rim of his glasses, "Says the little Lady with access to every elf spell there is. What do they call you again, the Thousand Elf?"

It was Lefiya's turn to blush, "Well, I'm still not nearly as skilled as Lady Riveria."

Elwin grunted, "I understand the feeling. I'm still chasing after the Captain of my last Familia. That woman was a monster," Elwin paused, "So, I hear you like to play tag with our Captain?"

Now Lefiya was red in the face from her rage, "That scoundrel was trying to get a look at Miss Ais! His behaviour was deplorable!"

"Wow, you are one emotional little elf, ain't ya?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That the stick ain't so far lodged up your ass as it is her Royal Highness."

Lefiya gasped, "How dare you speak like that about Lady Riveria! Do you understand the level of disrespect you have brought? I will not tolerate this!"

Elwin smiled, "I'm only teasing. You sure do make some cute faces when you're angry, though."

Lefiya blushed even deeper, "I do not know what you're talking about! Besides, speaking of Lady Riveria like that at all is horrible!"

"Listen, I know I just seem unconventional, but I'm really not an elf. I've had enough people tell me to know. I don't view Lady Riveria the same way you do. I won't insult her no more, but don't expect to get down on my knees and bow," explained Elwin.

Lefiya gave a timid nod before offering her hand to shake. Elwin took it with vigour. The two then began chatting about the upcoming expedition that Lefiya had been volunteered for. Not much later, Ryuu decided it was time to stumble home.

Before leaving, Mikoto and Urashima arranged their training with the Amazon Sisters, while Lily and Finn planned their first lessons. Welf shrugged Hestia onto his back while Otohime hopped onto Urashima's. Haruhime was also carried. The poor renard had entirely too much to drink, so Mikoto was stuck carrying her home bridal style. Elwin had sobered up since earlier and began making his way home with the rest of his Familia. All except one that is.

Bell Cranel was still out, strolling through the city. Ais walked with him in silence. They had already discussed the alliance and how grateful Bell was, but the conversation had petered off after that. Ais bemoaned her inability to have a normal conversation while Bell was still trying to process his complicated knot of feelings. He had thought that he had worked through all of this when they first reunited, but something panged his heart every time he looked at his idol.

"You're allowed to still be angry at me," said Ais, eventually.

Bell was shocked. Was he really that easy to read?

"I hurt you, and I think I'm finally starting to understand that. Riveria's been talking to me too. She's been helping me realize what I did…"

"Miss Ais, I'm not angry!"

"Bell, please don't lie to me."

To that, the boy had nothing to say. So Ais did the bravest thing she could and kept talking.

"It's ok to say that I hurt you and that I disappointed you. You can say you don't forgive me too. I haven't. I don't want you to forgive me either," Ais looked up then. They had both stopped walking a long time ago.

"At least, I don't think I want you to. I feel like I want to earn it," the sword princess smiled then, "I'm always so strange with you. When I'm around you, Bell, I feel…things. Things that I don't ever feel. I don't feel them around Riveria, or Tiona, or Lefiya. I only feel these things when I'm with you. And right now, those feelings are telling me that I need to earn your forgiveness."

"Ais, it's ok, really!" replied Bell, scrambling for the right thing to say.

Ais looked at him, then made a little 'oh' with her mouth.

"You need to do it too, then?"

Before Bell could respond, Ais asked another confusing question.

"Bell…are there any girls in your life?"

That one stunned Bell into silence. The only time that came to mind was the night when Ryuu had drank too much, but Bell wasn't enough of a fool to admit that. So instead, he lied through his teeth and shook his head. Ais seemed relieved.

That left Bell totally confused. In the silence that followed, the two of them heard the Hestia Familia drunkenly make their way down the streets. Ais jerked her head towards them.

"You should go. We should organize training soon," the girl blushed then, "If you want…"

"Yes! I do!" said the boy, trying to convince himself.

He ran down the street, hunting for his familia. Eventually, he found them back home. He saw Welf clamber into the forge, muttering something about sleeping near a good heat source. Lily had taken Hestia, an arm slung over the little prum's shoulder, and supported the Goddess to her room. When Hestia fell into bed, she took Lily with her. The prum quickly gave in and drifted off in the embrace of her Goddess.

As Bell started walking to his room, he saw little snippets that warmed his heart. Mikoto had gently tucked Haruhime into her bed before taking her hand as she fell asleep. Elwin had taken off his cap without bothering to put a cover on for the night. For the first time in months, his hair was free.

The funniest was Otohime, though. She had pulled Urashima into bed, cuddling close. Urashima had no chance of escape; Otohime's level four strength kept him locked in place.

When Bell got to his room, the only missing member of his familia was there. Ryuu was leaning against the wall, her cheeks a rosy red.

"Hello Ryuu, you seem to be better off than the rest," said Bell with a smile.

"No, I'm drunk too," replied the elf, her words as unsteady as her feet, "Helun told me I was before I left. I am at a specific level of drunk!"

Bell tilted his head, "And what level would that be?"

"Drunk enough to do this."

Ryuu brought her lips to his in drunken fervour. The kiss lasted only a couple seconds, and then the elf was off walking back down the hall. That was the second time she had gotten drunk and kissed Bell. Just like last time, she probably would not remember. So, Bell resigned himself to never talking about it.

With that, the boy was left utterly bewildered and resigned himself to the fate of never understanding what went through the minds of women.

Chapter Text

Over the next week, the Loki Familia alliance solidified. Lefiya joined Elwin, Haruhime, Otohime, and Ryuu on their daily trips to the Dungeon. Meanwhile, Mikoto and Urashima started training with the amazon twins in the evening. Lily began taking tactics lessons from Finn, and Welf was in talks to start making magic swords for Loki Familia. These groupings were soon noticed by the rest of Orario. The public image of both Familias rose, and people soon realized that interacting with one meant interacting with the other. The only question was, where was the Sword Princess or the Rabbit Foot? These were the questions on everybody's lips, for even Hestia and Loki, who were known to hate each other, had taken to going out on the town with their fellow Gods and Goddesses.

Bell was worried because Ais kept dodging the question of when they would start training. She kept saying that there was business to take care of, but Bell was worried. He thought that they had moved past the awkwardness. He thought that they were finally going to try and work together again. Due to his worrying, he kept pestering the Sword Princess for when. Finally, Ais relented and agreed to set their first training session since Bell's return. It happened early in the morning like they used to do. Both of them were hoping to play at normalcy. Bell met Ais at the top of the wall surrounding Orario. She was standing with what seemed to be a picnic basket in hand.

"I take it that's why you wanted me here before breakfast?" asked Bell, already starting to turn a faint shade of red. He had to remind himself that she didn't understand what this might mean for them as a couple of adventurers.

Ais nodded before opening the basket and bringing out a blanket. She unfolded it and spread it out for the two of them to share. For breakfast, she had brought potato puffs, water, and that was about it. Bell gave a faint chuckle at Ais's singlemindedness, but Ais was quick to glare at him. She informed Bell that these were all the unique flavours he had missed in the past year. Apparently, that was why their training had to wait a week. She had not wanted to start until she found them all. For the first one, she made a particular point of offering to feed it to Bell. She was quite incessant about it, saying that Riveria said it was the best thing to do. After feeding Bell, she proceeded to take her own bite. This action was almost too much for Bell. The poor boy was about to pass out.

"Miss Ais," Bell suddenly stopped talking when Ais glared at him. He coughed, "I mean, Ais," that got a small smile, "what were you planning for training?" The potato puffs were lovely, but he didn't want to waste the whole day. He had to become stronger; that was what mattered.

"We should start with sparring. I need to see how much you've changed in the last year," replied Ais, speaking around a mouthful of potato puff. Riveria always said it was bad manners to do so, but Bell didn't seem to care.

"You're not going to knock me out for lap pillows, are you?"

Ais looked away. Instead of replying, she stood up and removed her sword from its sheath, laying it on the ground. She then twirled the sheath in lazy circles to loosen up.

Bell joined her on his feet and began twirling his Hestia Knife between his fingers. He had only come with one blade today since he forgot his other knife at home. The two of them took up ready positions across from each other, waiting for one to make a move.

Bell took the initiative, going low with his body. His blade traced a tight arc, not to slash but to intercept the incoming sheath. He used his free hand to dart out and land a punch on Ais's abdomen. The sword princess grunted from the surprise attack. She had not expected Bell to fight so well. As they moved back and forth on the wall, she saw that he used his whole body more. He merged knife strikes with kicks and punches. There was more than that, though. It was like each of his strikes carried some sort of anger or resentment. He was a vicious storm.

Bell was so good and so into the battle that Ais unconsciously rose up to meet his challenge. She started to forget that they were just sparring. Eventually, she revealed herself in all her might as the Sword Princess. She was the wind, and her sheath clubbed Bell over the head. He crumpled to the ground.

After much time spent sparring, Ais had accomplished her objective. She had never said that she didn't want to give Bell a lap pillow. So, here was her precious bunny, passed out on the top of the wall, looking as cute as usual. She got down on her knees and slowly lifted his head onto her thighs. She started running a hand through his hair; it was as soft as she remembered. He had gotten so strong in the last year. There was only one thing that made her feel sad, the fact that he was so used to fighting other people. The way he punched and kicked, he was aiming for specific parts of the body.

Bell should only have to face monsters in the Dungeon. The fact that he had been forced out to fight people made Ais's heart break. That in itself was something else that she had to atone for. Looking down at her rabbit, she felt a feeling of deep, all-consuming sorrow for her actions. She hadn't known what Freya's promise would cost, but she hated herself for it. Eventually, she felt Bell stir. When he realized where he was, Bell tried to throw himself off her lap. Ais didn't like the idea of that, though, so she used the limits of her level six strength to hold down her bunny.

"Bell," said the girl, "I want to talk. I want to tell you about everything that happened."

That stopped Bell's stirring, "What do you mean?"

"About Freya, and why I had to promise not to help you…"

"Ais…you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," replied the boy.

"I want to."

"Oh…ok. What happened?"

Ais kept her hand running through Bell's hair. It comforted her while she was trying to explain this harrowing incident.

"To deal with that creature…Revis…I had to become stronger. You helped me realize that…" Ais smiled then, remembering Bell's conviction atop the wall following the Xenos incident. Bell wasn't entirely sure who Revis was, but that wasn't important now.

"Then what happened?"

"I thought that…if I needed to get stronger, I had to train with the strongest…"

Bell squirmed his way out of Ais's grasp. He sat up straight, turning to face the sword princess.

"Ais…you didn't…"

"I went to Ottar. Freya said that if I wanted to train with him, I needed to owe her a favour. She had to promise that the favour wouldn't harm Loki Familia…but I never thought…"

"Ais," said Bell, his voice laced with disappointment.

Ais felt her hands trembling. He didn't get it, though…she had to get stronger.

"I have to get stronger, Bell…"

"But why with Ottar?"

"To get stronger!" Ais felt her voice rising.

"Why go to Freya to get stronger?" replied Bell. Didn't she understand what she had cost him?

"Because Ottar's the strongest, and I need to be like him!"

"What is so important that you had to owe Freya a favour? Gros and Ray died because you thought you needed to get stronger!"

"I do need to get stronger!" Ais felt herself getting closer. In her head, her need to be honest with Bell clashed with her past. Her heart had a tight grasp on her secrets.

"Why, Ais!" Bell had never thought he could get infuriated with Ais, but first, she had said that she wanted to talk, but now she wasn't speaking at all, "Isn't this what you wanted to talk about!"

"I have to get stronger," Ais took a breath, her next words a whisper, "I have to get stronger to save her."

All of Bell's anger melted and was replaced with confusion, "Her? Who's her?"

The boy saw how much the girl trembled, though, so despite that this was an argument; he reached out to grab her hands, "Ais, who do you need to save?"

Ais sniffled, "I have to save Mother Bell…I need to get stronger to save Mother."

"Ais… you're crying," replied Bell. Instinctively, he reached out to wipe her tears with his thumb. His usual anxiety and embarrassment vanished as he saw a girl crying in front of him.

His hands were so warm. Despite Ais's selfish reasons for getting stronger, Bell's hands were still warm as they touched her face. She didn't deserve this, but a selfish part of her wanted him to stay there. She brought her own hands to cover his.

"My Mother was stolen, Bell. By the One-eyed Black Dragon, and I have to get stronger so I can save her. Maybe I shouldn't have gone to Ottar, but the creature Revis, she knew my Mother's name. She knew something…" then Ais told Bell something that she had only told Riveria, "I think my Mother is in the Dungeon somewhere. Somewhere deep, at the bottom maybe."

Bell nodded, "Maybe. Fels said that something is at the bottom of the Dungeon that can help the Xenos…maybe it involves your Mother?"

Ais tilted her head, "You're not angry at me?"

Bell stopped then, looking at the sky, "I think I still am, but now that I know…I think I can understand," a pause before, "Did I tell you about how Haruhime joined our Familia?"

Ais shook her head.

Bell sighed, "She was once part of Ishtar Familia. They were going to sacrifice her for her magic. I risked everything, the safety of my Familia, my life, and everything else. I was ready to risk it all just to save this girl I didn't know…"

"But no one died because of you…" replied Ais.

"But we almost did. Mikoto had to blow herself up to give us a chance. And before that, when I first met Mikoto, her Familia used mine to escape the Dungeon. Welf and Lily almost died because of her choice, but I know now, there is no one more loyal. And before that, Lily used me to make money. I almost died because she left me alone to die in the Dungeon."

"People almost died with you, Bell…not like with me…No one died because of you or your friends."

Bell saw it then. He saw that Ais must have been feeling guilty, just like he was. Bell couldn't fault her desire, though. She was trying to save her Mother…

"Except they did, Ais," replied Bell, surprised at his own boldness, "Everyone keeps telling me that it was Freya who did it, but I'm the one she was after. If I wasn't with the Xenos, then they wouldn't have died. If I had just given myself up, my family wouldn't have been put in danger. If people say it isn't my fault, then maybe it's not your fault either?"

Ais had never dared to hope she would hear these words. She knew that she didn't deserve to listen to them. The girl tilted her head, "Do you really mean that?"

Bell shook his head, "I don't know. Everything that happened last year was a mess. I don't think I'm over it yet…but I think I can start to understand. I mean, I can't tell you how often my selfish actions have put people in danger… If everyone can keep forgiving me, why can't they forgive you? I only feel like you deserve a chance, though. Just because you need to save your Mother…" Bell trailed off, now unsure of his own words.

Ais sighed in relief, "Good. You don't have to forgive me, Bell, but I want you to understand. My Mother is out there, and I need to save her."

This whole time, Ais was afraid Bell was going to just forgive her. She was worried his innocence would let her get away with what she had done. She still felt guilty for what had happened, but that was her reasoning, and Bell was willing to let her earn his forgiveness. That all said, though…

"Bell, I haven't forgiven you yet either," said Ais.

"Huh!"

Ais tried for what Tione called a teasing smile. She had been practicing a lot. She said, "You abandoned me, remember? You left me all alone for a whole year."

It took a minute before Bell realized; she was joking. When he didn't react right away, Ais started to pout and ignore him. She had tried so hard to make her first joke, but her bunny wasn't responding.

"No, Ais! It was hilarious, I swear!" replied Bell, trying to stop the anger of the Sword Princess.

"Then why didn't you laugh?"

"I wasn't expecting it!"

"I hope you're ready to start sparring again," replied Ais.

"Ahh!"

The two of them battled back and forth for hours. Eventually, lunchtime came, and they decided it was best to take a break. The two wandered through the city together, looking for something to eat. Eventually, they came to their favourite tried and true place, the potato puff stall. Unfortunately, today was not one of the days that Goddess Hestia was working; so, they paid full price for their puffs and wandered Orario as they ate. There was still an unspoken tension, they still hadn't gotten back around talking about Ais's mom, but the conversation became a bit easier.

When they returned to the top of the wall, Ais motioned for Bell to stop.

"Bell, you've been fighting well, but you need to relearn how to fight monsters."

Bell tilted his head, "What do you mean?"

"Everything about your stance and technique right now is good for fighting people," Ais's eyes narrowed, "There are no people in the Dungeon, though. There are only monsters. If you continue to fight like you are right now, I don't know how long you'll be able to continue fighting."

"So, what can I do?" replied Bell.

He had never considered the fact that his fighting style might be off, but it made sense. This past year, he spent more time fighting bandits and brigands than actual monsters. Not to mention, but monsters outside Orario were nowhere nearly as strong as in the Dungeon. He had grown lax around the dangerous beasts.

Ais put her sword down, planted her feet wide, and spread her arms, "I'm going to attack you, and you need to pretend that I'm a big monster from the Dungeon."

Bell tried to raise his knife up to attack, but then Ais let out a deep growl. Rather, she tried to let out a deep growl, but it was high-pitched and more of a mewling. Bell couldn't help it; he felt himself start giggling. Then his giggles turned into chuckles, which turned into full-on howling. Then he was grabbing his knees howling with laughter.

Ais was left standing, feeling confused. Then she pouted and felt very irritated that her bunny wasn't taking this seriously, so she knocked him out. There's no room for laughter in the Dungeon! But there might be room for lap pillows.

She put his head in her lap and started running a hand through his hair again. This was his fault for laughing at her, so she was going to exact revenge as she pleased. This day was probably the best day that Ais had spent all year. Her shoulders felt so much lighter, and the painful tension in her back was gone. It was like someone had removed a hot spike from her body that she had forgotten was there. She felt bad that she felt so good; there was still so much to atone for. However, she had talked with Bell, and she was going to work things out now. Looking down at him, though, something strange happened; her heart was beating faster than usual. She felt like staring at Bell, and the word 'cute' kept popping in her head. She was confused with these new feelings; they were unlike anything she had experienced before.

Then Bell woke up with a scream, and they resumed their training. Ais came after Bell like a monster would, angry and chaotic. She also didn't hold back, like a monster. She was a hurricane, and Bell was caught. The poor boy was battered and bruised for hours on end. He took hits frequently, still trying to readjust to fighting real monsters.

In one of their breaks, Ais tilted her head and asked, "Bell, did you really not fight any monsters while you were travelling? I thought you said you went to the Dragon Valley?"

Bell blushed and went to scratch the back of his head, "Well, we weren't there for very long. Then we were in the Far East for a while…and things were very violent, but also very human-centred."

"What happened out there?"

Bell looked to the sky, eyes narrowed in remembrance, "Well, we went there to find Haruhime's parents. When we met them, we met Otohime and Urashima, who were visiting the area. From there, we learned about all the struggles that they were facing. In the mess of things, we decided to help Otohime escape."

Ais tilted her head, a small smile forming, "Was it 'we' who decided, or was it you?" She liked teasing Bell; it made her heart beat, but in a good way. She would have to ask Tione for pointers later, though.

Bell looked away, "It was me. I volunteered to help, and Hestia and Haruhime volunteered as well. Since I was level five, and Haruhime could level boost, it was a pretty easy fight for us to help protect her. Then we met Goddess Amaterasu, who decided that it would be best for Otohime to travel with us. To leave the Nakamura Empire, though, we had to fight our way out. Constantly fending off rival families and suitors. All year it feels like I've been fighting people…"

Ais nodded, "Then we'll have to go to the Dungeon to train. We can go with the rest of your Familia and Lefiya. If you're out of practice, you'll die. You're not allowed to die, so you're going to practice."

Bell was going to reply, but then he saw Ais's face. Her lips were drawn, and her eyes were staring him down. Bell didn't feel like getting knocked out again, so he just nodded.

Ais nodded back, "Good, then you'll practice in the Dungeon, and I'll be there to save you if you need it."

That made Bell blush, "So, I'm going to have to rely on you to save me again? How pathetic is that?"

Bell hadn't meant to say the last part. He cursed himself for speaking out loud, dreading the look on Ais's face. Ais still held the face of grim determination, though. She reached out to grab Bell's hands and said, "I'll save you because you saved me. And I'll keep saving you, Bell, always. I didn't once, but I swear, I will always save you. And it'll never be pathetic because you're a hero Bell, and heroes need to be saved."

"What story has the hero being saved?"

"All of them. In the Argonaut story, the Argonaut is saved by his companions. In the story of the Wishing Lamp, the friendly genie saves the hero. Heroes get saved because they have to learn that fighting alone is impossible. That's how those stories work. At least, that's what Mother used to say," Ais blushed then, "I'm still working on learning that too," Ais couldn't meet Bell's eyes, "Maybe we can learn together?"

Bell sat there in awe. In all the story's his grandfather had told him, he had never considered the lesson Ais was giving him. He was in quiet reflection for so long that Ais went to reach out for him. Her hand was hesitant as it landed on his shoulder, giving him a gentle shake.

Bell was brought to his senses and declared, "Yes! We'll learn to save each other!"

That made Ais smile because no one had spoken to her like that before. She knew Loki Familia would come and save her; they were family. However, when Bell said he was going to save her, it made her feel special. Her heart started beating again, and she felt her face get warm. Before she could process what happened to her, she stood up to resume training for the rest of the day.

After constant bouts of sparring and lap pillows, the sun started to set. As they were finishing up, another group joined them.

"Hey hey, it's Ais and Mister Argonaut!"

Tiona and Tione were there to train their own students, Urashima and Mikoto. Mikoto was sweating, having already trained that morning with the waitresses. Not only that, but she had overseen Welf and Lily's training in the garden. Her body was exhausted, but she knew that meant it was the perfect time to keep training. Lady Nike had mentioned the same thing to the young samurai back in the arena.

"Sir Bell! I hope that you have had a productive day!" cried Mikoto in greeting. Urashima raised an arm as well, sleeves and gloves still firmly in place. Apparently, Tione and Tiona had told him to roll up his sleeves for training. Urashima had refused and almost thrown a fit. Eventually, the Amazons relented, and Urashima was allowed to train in his usual get-up.

The four of them usually came here to practice in the evening, but they had forgotten that Ais and Bell were training together today. Instead of turning around, though, Mikoto stepped forward.

"Excuse me, Lady Ais, can I spar with you? It would be most beneficial."

Ais nodded immediately, curious to see how the rest of Bell's Familia fought. As she readied her sheathe, she said, "I'll tell you now though, I'm horrible at holding back."

Mikoto drew her katana, "Understood."

The second Mikoto stopped talking, the Sword Princess charged. Mikoto was expecting it, though. For weeks she had been training with the best female warriors in Orario. Now she faced the best swordswoman.

Mikoto parried and weaved, dancing around Ais's empty sheathe. The intensity of the sparring sparked something deep inside the samurai. She felt her body slipping into the mindset she had developed last year. Eventually, the dodging stopped, and parries began to turn into counterattacks. She dropped from her usual two-handed wielding. She had one hand on her sword, and the other was holding a long knife. These past weeks she had been rotating through everyone's weapons. She asked all the waitresses if she could borrow their different weapons for practice. Now though, with sword and knife, she was on familiar footing.

Using familiar techniques, Mikoto's blades danced. Her blocks and parries were always angled ever so slightly, never catching Ais's strikes directly. The blows were able to keep the Sword Princess slightly off balance. Ais's overwhelming power, and inability to hold back, tripped her up.

'Good Yamato! Turn their overwhelming might into a weakness!' Cried Lord Horus.

That said, she was still fighting Ais Wallenstein. Adjustments were made quickly, and Ais used overwhelming strikes to break through numerous times. There were plenty of new bruises that would require medicine later.

Finally, Ais fully adapted to Mikoto's tricks. She re-angled her sheathe, catching Mikoto with her strike in full force. Mikoto had to drop her knife to keep herself from being blown away. Both hands on her katana, Mikoto struggled to push back. Facing her now, Mikoto understood why Bell was so in awe. This was almost beyond imagination. Almost.

Mikoto had trained for a year, though, and she wanted to get at least one hit in. In that moment of desperate struggle with their blades crossed, she resorted to an old move she often used in the arena. Their bodies pressed together; it was easy for Mikoto to throw her head into the Sword Princess's. Now, this was no ordinary headbutt. Mikoto knew that throwing her head against a level six skull was an easy way to get a concussion. Thankfully, there is a much softer part of the face to hit.

When Mikoto headbutted her, Ais stumbled back in confusion and grabbed her nose. When she brought her hand away, she saw that there was blood on her glove. She lowered her sheathe, looked at the blood and then looked at Mikoto, still standing there breathing heavily.

"You're really good," said the Sword Princess, "You fight like Tiona and Tione."

Tione sauntered up, "You're right. When we heard that she had trained in an arena, we almost didn't believe it. Then we saw her fight. She fight's just like us, no mistaking it."

Then Tiona slapped Mikoto across the shoulder-blades, causing the samurai to fall face-first into the bricks, "Yeah! She's terrific! But I'm still way tougher than she is!"

As Mikoto started to pick herself off the ground, Bell came to help and said, "That was amazing, Mikoto! You were so cool! It looked like you were dancing or something!"

"Thank you, Sir Bell, but it is obvious I still have much to learn," Mikoto turned to Ais and bowed, "Thank you, Lady Ais, this was quite instructional."

Now Ais was really confused, "Why are you bowing? We're just training, right?"

Tione nodded, "You're damn right we're training. Which means that it's your turn, you mysterious bastard!"

Tione lifted her knives as she faced Urashima. He responded in kind, finding a similar position. Then the two of them were at each others' throats, fighting up close and personal like only knife fighters could. Tiona watched the two of them, throwing out pieces of advice as she did. Mikoto took the chance to breathe, sliding down to sit on the wall. She looked to watch the sunset but found the Sword Princess staring at her.

"Lady Ais, is there something I can do for you?"

Ais nodded before kneeling in front of Mikoto, "We're going on an expedition together, so I wanted to talk to you."

Mikoto looked to Bell for help, but the young boy just shrugged. So Mikoto replied, "Talk to me about what?"

"Is it true that you can sense monsters?"

Mikoto rubbed her head before nodding, then replied, "Yes, but only if I have fought them before. And I can't tell what kind of monster it is. But yes, I can sense monsters with my skill."

Ais made an oh shape with her mouth. Then she asked, "And you can do gravity magic, right?"

Mikoto nodded again, still unsure of what the point was.

"And you fight so well, and I've heard you do it with so many weapons…" Ais kept up her look of astonishment, "You must be the most versatile adventurer in Orario."

Now Mikoto was blushing and stammering, "Not at all, Lady Ais! I am simply well trained…to say that I am the most versatile…surely there must be others, like in Loki Familia?"

Ais shook her head, "We're all specialized in Loki Familia. We focus on one fighting style. Finn says it's because it gives us comfort in the Dungeon, where nothing is comfortable. It makes us easy to fight, though. Not you, though; you won't be easy."

Having said her piece, Ais stood up and walked over to talk to Tiona. Mikoto followed Ais's movement with her eyes before turning to Bell.

Bell just shrugged at the confused look before offering a hand to help Mikoto up. She took it, coming to her feet to watch Urashima. Then it was her turn to join them, and the six of them sparred together until the moon climbed into the sky.

Finally, they returned home. The rest of Hestia Familia had already started dinner, and Mikoto explained what had happened. When Hestia heard that Bell had been training with Ais all day, she stared at her first child. Bell picked up on the ominous look, and after dinner, he went up to Hestia's room. Hestia was waiting for him, hands on her hips.

"Ahhh, my darling Bell, anything you'd like to explain?"

Bell looked at the ground, "Well, me and Ais were having a lot of fun. Then we got to talking about everything, and then we had more fun…and then time ran away…"

As Bell tried to formulate his thoughts, Hestia stepped forward and patted Bell on the head, "I'm happy to hear it. Do you want to talk about it?"

When Bell looked up, he found his Goddess smiling down at him. Others called her useless, or lazy, or a good-for-nothing, but Bell knew differently. The only thing Hestia wanted was for her Familia to be happy and healthy. She didn't care if that meant it came from other Familias. She was the least prideful deity Bell had ever met. He understood that he was the luckiest adventurer in the whole world. Here was why Bell could never be with Freya; no matter how selfish the desire was, he could never leave Hestia behind. He felt such a surge of emotions then.

"Thank you, Goddess Hestia; I don't know what I'd do without you. Goddess, I really do love you," he blurted out.

Hestia's smile dropped then, and she stared at Bell in surprise. Then tears started to fall from her eyes. She brought her arm up to rub at them while she said, "Bell, you can't just say things like that to a girl. What am I supposed to do with you, you jerk?"

Before Bell could respond, she threw her arms out to hug him. She knew that Bell would never love her the way she wanted, but this would always be enough. Eventually, the two of them reined in their emotions, and Hestia invited Bell into her room to talk.

With that, the boy told his Goddess about his perfect day.

Chapter Text

There was only a couple of days left before the tournament began. Everyone from Hestia Familia participating in the contest had already registered, and the city was starting to make preparations. More and more travellers came pouring in through the gates every day; some of them were tourists, here for the spectacle, while others were merchants hoping to capitalize on the festivities.

Ryuu didn't care about any of that, though. The only thing she cared about was making sure that her Familia was given all the tools they needed to succeed. Right now, that meant training Mikoto. In the yard of the Hostess of Fertility, the elf and the samurai duelled. Currently, Mikoto was using a pair of knuckle-dusters that she had borrowed from Lunoire. It was just the two of them though, the waitresses had to do their job, and Aisha had business with her Familia to attend to.

As Ryuu swung her wooden blade, she observed Mikoto's footwork. The young raven-haired girl had done well, switching to a fist-fighting stance. Her blows were quick, but they carried her follow-through. It was apparent that Mikoto was putting her everything into the fight. That said…

"OW!"

Ryuu had seen through Mikoto's stance and struck her unprotect abdominal. The young girl had overextended herself, leaving her open for attack. As Mikoto hopped back and prepared herself to continue, Ryuu motioned for her stop.

"That's enough for today Mikoto," said the elf.

"No, Lady Ryuu! I must keep training!" There was desperate light in Mikoto's eyes, out to prove something.

Ryuu shook her head, "We are only days away now. Rest Mikoto, your body needs time to prepare," Ryuu smirked, "That's an order from your vice-captain, understand?"

Mikoto looked like she was going to argue, but Ryuu was saved the headache when Helun came outside with sandwiches.

"Here you go, you two, I made breakfast!" said the girl with grey hair.

Ryuu almost thought it was her old best friend with her uniform and her hair tied up. Now though, she saw none of the playfulness in the eyes nor the upturned mouth that was always smiling. Helun looked like her old friend Syr, but they weren't the same. Thinking about it still made Ryuu incredibly sad. One of the only people she had ever learned to trust, and she had been lying for years. Ryuu's sense of betrayal to Freya, Syr, and Helun was more profound than she could describe. Even deeper than that between Bell and Ais. The young elf had not just lost her best friend; she had lost the person who helped her rise up from her darkness so long ago.

Upon the night that they had partied after their expedition, parts of which Ryuu still does not remember, the elf and not-Syr had sat down to talk. Helun, who preferred to be called Syr, told Ryuu her life story. She also explained the effects of her magic. All those years, she had felt Freya's emotions towards everyone at the inn, including Ryuu. Helun had begun to feel like they were her family, and she had come to love them, even though she hadn't met them. After Freya Familia's attack on the Xenos and Hestia Familia's subsequent flight from Orario, the young girl found that she had nowhere to call home. Freya Familia refused to let her back in, seeing as how her secret had been exposed. That's when Mamma came and offered her a fresh start as a true waitress. Now, Helun, who Ryuu could not call Syr, was trying to earn her place back with her family. It was slow going.

Ryuu and Helun had a long conversation that night. Helun apologized, begged for forgiveness, and said that she wanted to be Ryuu's friend for real. Ryuu tentatively agreed to give it a try. In reality, Ryuu loved her Familia with every fibre of her being, but she missed the best friend that had been like a sister to her. Maybe it was a bad idea to trust Helun, but Ryuu decided to be selfish, just this once.

Ryuu thanked Helun for the breakfast sandwiches and then scheduled a dinner to catch up with her later. Then, Mikoto and Ryuu left for home. When they got home, they found Bell already there, sparring with Urashima in the front yard. For whatever reason, Ryuu felt her lips burning when she looked at Bell these days. She felt as if there was a memory she was forgetting, but whenever she wanted to talk to Bell about it, he started blushing and said that he was busy.

Mikoto and Ryuu walked over to watch the two boys in action. Urashima was obviously more refined, coming from years of practice and training, but Bell's ferocity was absolutely frightening. It left Ryuu breathless, and her heart was pounding. There was something unbelievably erotic about the way he fought. It made Ryuu tremble.

In the corner of the yard, Ryuu noticed the wind pick up. A collection of leaves seemed to be disturbed. Ryuu nodded at the corner before turning back to watch the spar.

Eventually, the two sparring gentlemen noticed their spectators. Bell signalled a pause and nodded to Ryuu and Mikoto.

"Hey, you two, how was your morning training?" asked Bell.

Mikoto smiled, "I am starting to feel that I am ready for this upcoming battle!" Then she blushed, "However, I have been made aware that I need to rest and recuperate."

Urashima nodded, "Milady has been telling me the same thing. She says that if she sees me sparring anymore after today, she will tie me to the bed."

"Well, she's not wrong; rest is important to allow your muscles time to regrow," added Bell.

Ryuu snorted, "How often do you follow that advice, Bell?"

The boy blushed before scratching his cheek. He then mumbled his way away back inside. Mikoto began to move opposite Urashima, the two of them reaching an unspeaking agreement to train. That is until a young lady came bursting outside to tackle Urashima.

"Oh no, you don't! I said no more training! You are going to come inside and get pampered; you got that?"

Otohime used her empowered strength to throw her beloved bodyguard over her shoulder. She marched him back inside, taking the time to lecture him on proper health habits. Thankfully, she hadn't left for her dungeon journey today. Ryuu and Mikoto watched the two of them go before the elf turned to samurai.

"I hope I don't have to do the same to you?" asked Ryuu.

Mikoto blushed and shook her head, unable to meet Ryuu's eyes. She started to make her way inside, leaving Ryuu on the lawn. After the young far-eastern girl made her way inside, Ryuu turned to the shady corner of her home, where leaves had been disturbed.

"Well Andromeda, you can come out now," said Ryuu.

There was a shimmer in the air, and the captain of Hermes Familia materialized out of thin air. She stuffed her Hades Helm away and readjusted her glasses.

"Hello Leon," greeted Asfi, "When did you realize?"

"You mean, how long did I know you were following me? Since the Hostess of Fertility. I'm guessing you want to arrange the meeting between our deities?" asked Ryuu.

Asfi nodded, "That was the purpose of my mission. I was simply waiting for the right moment to talk."

Ryuu crossed her arms, "Alright then, what do you have to say? When and where does Hermes want to meet with Goddess Hestia?"

Asfi pushed her glasses up on her nose, "That's the thing. Lord Hermes has already left to go and talk to Lady Hestia at her place of work."

Ryuu didn't speak, the only indication of her anger being her narrowed eyes.

"Leave Andromeda, now," said the elf.

"Listen, Leon-"

"I don't want to hear it. I told you that Lord Hermes dropping in on Lady Hestia without explanation was unacceptable. Again, your Familia does as they please, doing what they think is best without considering the consequences," Ryuu trembled with anger, "Leave, now."

Asfi sighed before disappearing and hopping the fence. Ryuu waited all of twenty seconds before she took off to find her Goddess.

At the same time, Hestia was getting ready to open up shop for Hephaistos. As she finished dusting some shelves in the back, she heard the bell ring from the front door. She turned and said, "I'm sorry, but we're not open yet!"

Then she saw the hat on top of a golden head of hair. The well-worn traveller's clothes and mischievous smile made Hestia's blood boil. Her whole body started to shake.

"Leave."

Hermes tipped his hat up, revealing his golden eyes, "Now, now Hestia, is that any way to talk to an old friend?"

"I hate you, Hermes, we're not open, now leave," replied Hestia.

Hermes gripped his tunic in mock anguish, "You wound me with your unkind words, Hestia. What have I done to earn you such scorn? Did I not keep your travels secret this past year?"

"You sold us out, Hermes. You sold us out to Freya. She figured out where we were because of what you told her. All those Xenos, slaughtered because you sold us out," answered Hestia.

Hestia liked to think she was a kind and forgiving Goddess. She understood that people made mistakes; she had made plenty herself. The little Goddess also believed that there was good to be found in everyone. She didn't like to hold deep grudges, and she hated getting into fights. Now though, she hated Hermes.

Hermes dropped his act and gave Hestia a mocking glare, "Those monsters? You and Ouranos are fools for thinking that those things are anything more than what they really are. You probably believe that we can co-exist with them, don't you? Always so naïve, Hestia."

Before Hestia could respond, Hermes had regained his carefree smile, "As for selling you out, I had to! Freya was getting ready to lay waste to the city! Loki wasn't going to stop her, so someone had to do something! Besides, who do you think helped Fels clear a path for you and your Familia to leave? Who do you think helped little old Ryuu join up with you outside the city?" Hermes swept his arms apart, "Really, I had you and Bell's best interests at heart! I will always do whatever it takes for Bell!"

"Everything except ask him what he wants. You always say that what you're doing is for the best, but what does that mean, Hermes? How do you know about Bell? Why do you care so much about what happens to him?"

With every question, Hestia approached Hermes. Eventually, the two deities were nose to nose. The tiny Goddess was fury incarnate, though, and even the customarily collected Hermes was beginning to sweat under her interrogation.

"It's like I said, Hestia, I'm keeping an eye on Bell for a friend!" Answered Hermes.

"Who?" Replied Hestia, her voice growing in volume.

Hermes shook his head and his hands, "Now, now, you wouldn't expect me to divulge secret information like that, would you? It's sensitive stuff! I don't think it's anything you have to worry about, though! I swear to the gods!"

Hestia growled then. Hands-on her hips, she was a force to be reckoned with. Just as Hermes was about to start talking her down and worm his way back to what he wanted to talk about, he felt a rush of air pass by. Hermes had backed up before to give himself some space from the wrath of the tiny Goddess. Occupying that space now, though, was a blonde elf with piercing sky-blue eyes. Her whole body screamed, protect!

"Lady Hestia has Lord Hermes done anything adverse?"

Hestia shook her head while Hermes called out behind his shoulder, "Really, Asfi? There wasn't anything you could do to keep her away? You couldn't try distracting her?"

As materialized from thin air, "Pardon Lord Hermes, but Leon wasn't in a talking mood. She was quite worried about her Goddess."

"Well now, Ryuu, I must say it is good to see you again! Anything I can do to convince you that I am not your enemy?"

Ryu narrowed her eyes, "Answer Lady Hestia's questions, and I will consider it."

Hermes sighed, "Well, I can't do that. So, for now, I guess it's time for me to leave!"

Hermes started walking away, waving a hand behind him as he went, "We'll have to catch up next time, Hestia!"

Only when Hermes was gone from view did Hestia relax with a sigh. She turned to her vice-captain, "Thanks for coming, Ryuu! Nice to know that you had my back there!"

Ryuu nodded, allowing herself a small smile, "It was my honour Lady Hestia. I apologize though," Ryuu frowned, "Andromeda swore that Hermes wasn't going to surprise you like that."

Hestia sighed, "I wouldn't blame Miss Asfi in that scenario. Hermes is just like that sometimes. He's a real pain in the ass that way."

Ryuu nodded, "All the same, Lady Hestia, I would prefer to stay by your side today. If you don't mind."

Hestia let out a puff of air, "I guess you're right. It's probably for the best for me not to be alone," Hestia smiled then, "Still, though, this is a great excuse for us to catch up! It's been too long, my fine elven companion!"

Ryuu couldn't help smiling. Hestia was incredibly different from Astrea. Hestia was not overly concerned with justice, nor did she believe it was her duty to do good. The trait they did share, though, was their compassion and empathy. Whenever Ryuu had a troubled day, Hestia was one of the first to comfort her, and the little Goddess was often the best. Hestia made Ryuu feel safe and loved. She made Ryuu feel like she was part of a family again.

At the end of Hestia's shift, Hephaistos stopped by. The Goddess of the Forge strode in, hand on her hip. When she saw that it was just Hestia, Ryuu, and the shopkeeper, she let out a sigh of relief.

Hephaistos walked up to her best friend and ruffled her hair, "I heard that Hermes stopped by, so I thought I would come by and check on you. He do anything I need to know about?"

Hestia shook her head, "Not, just tried to interrogate me and beg forgiveness," Hestia pouted, "Not that I was in a forgiving mood, that is…"

Hephaistos nodded, "Good, you shouldn't feel pressured to do anything you don't want to," Hephaistos smiled, "Besides, it's about time someone put that cocky God in his place."

Hephaistos looked to Ryuu, "I'm guessing you came to keep an eye on her?"

Ryuu nodded, and Hephaistos walked over and offered her hand to shake, "I have to offer you my thanks," Hephaistos cast her one good eye over at Hestia, "My best friend might be a pain in the butt, but she's important to me."

Ryuu took Hephaistos's hand but shook her head, "It is my duty to keep her safe," Ryuu also cast an eye at Hestia, "That said, I am quite fond of her, and I know how quick she is to throw herself into danger."

After that, Hephaistos stayed to chat with the two of them well after the shop had closed. Ryuu mostly just hung around Hestia's shop, standing at the entrance. Thankfully, Hermes didn't show his face again, and neither did the other members of his Familia. All in all, it was a quiet day.

As the two of them made their way home, Ryuu felt compelled to ask, "Now that Bell is patching things up with the Sword Princess, has his skill returned to full capacity?"

Bell's skill deficiency wasn't a secret to the Familia's vice-captain. In fact, every member of the Familia, except Bell and the new recruits, knew about what was going on.

Hestia shook her head, "No, not yet, at least, not all the way. After meeting with the Xenos again, there was a bump, but it's nothing compared to before."

Ryuu hummed in agreement, "I thought as much. His growth is still definitely faster than mine right now, but I remember hearing what it used to be like from the others. Apparently, it was quite the spectacle."

Hestia chuckled, "That's one way to put it," Hestia put her arms behind her head, "Still though, we can't rush these things. Bell has to figure out for himself if he's still in love with Wallenwhatsherface," Hestia yawned before continuing, "That said, it sounds like things are getting better. At least, that's what he told me after training the other day."

For some reason, hearing that Bell was patching things up with the Sword Princess made Ryuu's heart break a little bit. It must have shown on her face because Hestia shot her a sly sidelong glance.

"Yeah, I know how you feel. I'm jealous too. My poor little Bell, falling in love with the Sword Princess again. Just when I thought I had a chance to win his affections. Sigh, life sure is hard being a Goddess in love."

Ryuu felt her cheeks warm, "I'm sure I don't understand what you're suggesting, Lady Hestia."

Hestia chuckled, "No need to hide it. You're in love with Bell?" Hestia snorted, "Join the club. This means that I get it," Hestia looked to the sky, "On the one hand, I want Bell to be happy, more than anything. If Ais Wallenstein is who makes him happy, then I'm all for it. That said, I am still just a little bit jealous, not to mention how disheartening it is. I mean, what other group of people have a literal indicator for when their crush is in love with someone else?"

Ryuu chose to examine the ground then.

Hestia put a hand on Ryuu's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze, "You don't have to be so embarrassed; you know. I've talked with Lily about this, and I've even overheard Haruhime and Mikoto talking about it. We all want Bell to be happy; we just wish Bell was happy with us," Hestia shrugged, "No need trying to deny what we feel."

The little Goddess put her hands on her hips, "Besides, it's not like I'll be giving up my Bell so easily," Hestia glared at Ryuu, "That goes for you to got that?"

At the sight of the glare of her diminutive Goddess, Ryuu laughed loud and for all to hear. With a family like this, the elf found that she didn't care what others thought of her. Why worry if people thought little of her? If anyone tried to insult her, she had this small group of people ready to die for her just to prove how much they cared. They truly were the successors of Astrea Familia; they were heroes.

Speaking of which, when they finally got home, the two women found the object of their desire pacing in front of the house. When he saw the two of them, he came running up.

"You're both ok! Thank goodness! I was so worried!"

Poor Bell looked like he had been waiting for them all day. Ryuu blushed then, remembering that she had run off without telling anybody where she had been all day. As Bell fussed over them, a much stricter voice spoke up.

"Well, it's about time you two got home!"

Standing at the top of the steps was Lilliruca Arde, glaring down at her Goddess and Vice-Captain, her tiny arms crossed over her chest.

"Hey there, Little Miss Supporter! Funny story!" started Hestia.

Lily held up a hand in response and pointed inside. Any response Hestia had died on her lips. Instead, she hung her head and resigned herself to her fate. They made their way inside and were told that they would have dinner before being interrogated. The Goddess and the elf walked to the dining room where the rest of their Familia was waiting. Dinner had been served, and they had left two plates out for them. The one surprise waiting for them was that Lefiya Veridis and Ais Wallenstein were also sitting at the table. When Hestia tilted her head in confusion, Lefiya blushed and stammered.

"Miss Ais was training with Bell Cranel, and I was in the dungeon with the others. We were around when they learned that Miss Ryuu was missing. Then at the end of the day, when Goddess Hestia hadn't returned home yet…" Lefiya looked away, "We thought it would be a good idea to make sure that you were ok…" said the elf, "We worried that Freya might have made a move…" Then the elf sat upright, "Just because of the alliance mind you! No other reason!"

Being the airhead that she is, Ais looked at Lefiya in confusion, "Lefiya, you said you were worried about them; why did you lie?" Ais then looked at Hestia and Ryuu, "I don't know what Lefiya meant, but I stayed because I thought it would be the right thing to do."

"Awww, Wallenwhatsit! You're just too sweet!" proclaimed Hestia, ruffling the Sword Princess's hair as she walked to her spot at the head of the table. Ais looked confused at Hestia's actions, bringing her hands to touch the area that Hestia had ruffled.

"Goddess Hestia! Don't think this means you can ignore what happened!" exclaimed Lily, still not sitting down. Ryuu had taken her own seat, on Hestia's left side, opposite Bell. Next to her, Welf snorted.

"Calm your roll little bit. They're alive and healthy, and I'm sure if there was something wrong, we could see it on their faces," Welf jammed his thumb over at Ryuu and Hestia, "Not like these two are known for their lying."

Ryuu frowned, "I am a wonderful poker player, with a wonderful poker face!"

Welf snorted, "Yeah, but you're shit at lying in real life."

Ryuu looked insulted, but Urashima nodded sagely, "It's true, Lady Ryuu. Your skills at lying rival the atrocity that is Lady Otohime's acting."

For that comment, Urashima got a smack on the head. Elwin snickered from his spot across from Urashima, "Honestly, the only ones in this familia that can lie are Lily, Welf, and Ura."

Urashima shook his head, "Not true, Elwin; you are quite the skilled liar when you want to be."

Elwin smiled, "I know, but one should never name one's self in these situations."

As the banter between Familia members continued, Ais and Lefiya were totally lost. They had no way to participate in the conversation and could only re-enter when Haruhime took pity on them.

"Lady Ais, Lady Lefiya, you two seem lost. Does Loki Familia not talk at meals?" asked the Renard girl, her smile too beautiful to look at entirely. The rest of Hestia Familia quieted down to wait for their answer.

Lefiya paused to consider her answer, careful not to insult her familia when Ais spoke up. Since she was an airhead, she obviously did not care what she said. These people were their allies, right?

"Not like you all do. We're too big for everyone to talk to each other," then Ais smiled, "But I do enjoy talking with Lefyia, Tione, and Tiona." Ais looked at Lefiya. Lefiya's face lit up at the comment, humming in delight.

Welf shrugged, "Makes sense for a larger Familia. I remember, as a member of Hephaistos Familia, I didn't even know the names of all the other smiths she had working for her," Welf frowned, "Although, I guess that was because no one wanted to talk to me in the first place."

Then Welf stopped talking. He swung his head over to stare at Lefiya, "By the way, why don't you hate me, Thousand Elf? Most elves hate Crozzos."

Lefiya shrugged, "I am not like most elves then. Besides, the forest I grew up in had a lot of interactions with non-elf people," Lefiya made a dismissive gesture with her hand, "Anyway, not like you personally attacked all elves, right? Not like you're personally responsible. Also, didn't you refuse to make magic swords for years? Didn't you refuse to return to your awful family?"

Apparently, that response caught Welf off guard. Before Welf could try and respond, Lefiya turned to Elwin, "Ah yes! I just remembered! Mister Elwin, I know you never had any contact with your elf father, but I was wondering if you knew what forest he was from?"

Elwin looked away, a scowl forming, "I mean, not like I should, right? And why would I tell you anyway? That good-for-nothing can rot for all I care."

Lefiya nodded, "Exactly why I want to find him. I think he deserves a good thrashing for abandoning his son and bringing shame to all elves."

The dinner table was silent for a second, and Lefiya worried she had said something wrong. Then, Elwin broke down laughing. He was laughing so hard he fell from the table. When he picked himself up, he was still laughing. Lefiya made a little "huh" sound, her eyes wide in confusion. He tried to stop and catch his breath, but then he would look at Lefiya and start laughing again. Eventually, the little elf girl got mad.

"And what's so funny? I was trying to be nice!" cried out Lefiya. Here she was, trying to reach out and be friendly with this interesting half-elf…and he was…he was…he was laughing at her!

Finally, Elwin composed himself. The rest of the table just sat there quietly, taking in the spectacle before them. They watched in silence as Elwin walked to the other side and took Lefiya's hands in his own.

"I wasn't laughing at you, I promise," said Elwin, voice layered in sincerity, "That is quite probably the kindest thing you could have said to me."

The half-elf winked then, "Someday, I might just take you up on your offer."

Lefiya blushed at his response. The rest of the dinner went smoothly, Hestia Familia working harder to integrate their guests. Eventually, dinner finished, and they moved their way to the lounge. They started playing games; it was Ais's first time playing cards and chatting about nonsense. Ais lost at every game, but she seemed to be having a lot of fun. Every new game they played, Ais would sit there, her face lit up in fascination. She would share a hand with Bell for the more complicated games and let him play while she watched. Their heads were close together for the whole evening. Many laughs were had, but then, a knock came at their door. Haruhime left to check, claiming it was her duty as their maid and returned with her tail swishing nervously. Behind her were Finn Deimne and Gareth Landrock.

"So, this is where you two little lasses were," said Gareth, "You know, you've been here all day."

Ais couldn't look her adoptive guardians in the eye. She mumbled out, "We were having fun."

That got a hearty chuckle from Gareth, "No need to worry lass, you ain't in trouble. Just let us know next time."

Finn nodded with a smile on his face, "No need to worry, Ais. That said, Loki wants you home now. We have to go over our participants for the tournament."

Lefiya and Ais got up, both making their goodbyes as they went. Loki Familia left, and Hestia Familia chatted amongst themselves. After a minute of idle chatter, Lily stood up.

"Lily believes it is time that Goddess Hestia and Miss Ryuu explained what happened today."

Ryuu nodded, "Andromeda, that is Asfi, visited me today following Mikoto's training. She told me that Lord Hermes was going to talk to Lady Hestia at her work. I refused to let him interrogate her alone, so I left to protect her," Ryuu bowed her head, "I apologize for not informing any of you of my actions."

Lily whirled to her Goddess, "And what about you, Hestia? What happened with Hermes? Why were you late to come home?"

Hestia shrugged, "Hermes wanted to try and apologize for what he did. I told him to shove it up his ass and asked him some questions. He refused to answer, and then Ryuu showed up. We're late because Hephaistos stopped by when she heard the commotion. She wanted to know what was up."

Mikoto steepled her fingers, "So, Lord Hermes is back in the picture…"

The rest of Hestia Familia sat there in contemplative silence, digesting the news. Then, Hestia stood up with a stretch.

"Hey now, if that smug bastard wants to play his games, then we'll deal with it when it comes. Right now, we have a tournament coming up in a couple days. That is to be our sole focus! Now, it's been a long day for me personally, so I'm going to bed!"

With that, the tiny Goddess bounced away. Urashima snorted before following, Otohime happily in tow. Elwin nodded his agreement as he left. Lily didn't look happy about how dismissive everyone was, but Welf gave her should a pat and shrugged. The two decided there was nothing to it and went to bed. Mikoto and Haruhime were the next to follow, Mikoto helping her dear friend collect the glasses and teapot that had been brought out. That left Hestia's Captain and Vice-Captain sitting awkwardly in silence.

Bell had been quiet since hearing that Hermes was involved. His face a mask, Ryuu could only pick up on the distress he hid within.

Eventually, she said, "I haven't forgiven him yet."

Bell looked up. Ryuu continued, "I haven't forgiven Hermes, his Familia, or Asfi. She might be my friend, but I still don't agree with what she did. You don't have to either."

Bell nodded in silent agreement, then Ryuu spoke again.

"Helun's been asking about you."

That got Bell to blush. Ryuu smiled, happy that Bell was still Bell.

"You should go and talk to her. I think there's a lot that you both need to say," Ryuu stood up to go to bed, "That's just my opinion, though."

The elf left the boy in contemplative thought.

Meanwhile, on the Tower of Babel's highest floor, a Goddess of unmatched beauty drank wine. Her most devoted servant entered.

Freya smiled, "Ahh, you're back, Ottar. Tell me, how are things going with our friends?"

Ottar nodded, his head bobbing in the reflection, "Well, Lady Freya. They say that everything is in place for the tournament."

The Goddess of Beauty smiled, "How wonderful," she took a sip from her glass, the red staining her teeth, and declared, "I think this will be a most excellent festival!"

With that, unstoppable plans lurched into motion.

Chapter Text

When Mikoto woke up the morning of the tournament, she felt remarkably relaxed. There were no nightmares, no sleepless night, and no fits of sickness from her anxiety. Perhaps it was the fact that she was going to be fighting in an arena again. The event was nothing new. In fact, the spectacle of it all seemed to be a lot tamer than what she was used to. She also expected a lot less death. When she looked out the window, she saw that the sun had already risen and Haruhime had already left the room. Mikoto busied herself by getting changed into her battle gear, loading up her weaponry, and finally putting her hair into its usual large braid. She finished by putting in her signature hair loops and left to go find the others.

When she got to the dining room, she found breakfast already prepared and Haruhime bustling around with a pot of tea. The fox girl seemed to be entranced in her work, so Mikoto made her presence known by coughing into her fist.

Haruhime whirled around and gave a bright smile, "Miss Mikoto! You're awake; I made your favourite tea and breakfast! Please sit down; the others will be joining us shortly!"

Haruhime rushed around to her friend a cup. Mikoto tried to help her, but the renard refused. Her reason was, "Everyone else has been working so hard for this tournament. One such as I must do what little that they can as well!"

Haruhime refused to listen to any of Mikoto's reasons for why the fox-girl was useful. Eventually, Mikoto gave up and settled down to enjoy breakfast. Slowly, the rest of her familia filed in. As everyone finished eating, Lily began their morning meeting.

"Alright, time to go over the schedule for the next week! First, no dungeon crawling! If you're not fighting, then you're going to be supporting those who are! Also, Lily wants every eye possible to scout the competition. Now, today is the level two's doubles and singles melee. Lily and Mister Welf will be in the morning, and Miss Mikoto will be fighting in the afternoon.

Hestia nodded, "All you have to do is make it to the last 16 standing. I'm sure you'll be fine!" Hestia made a dismissive gesture and returned to her oatmeal.

Lily scowled, "Please do not be so lackadaisical, Goddess Hestia! These are intense battles!"

Ryuu nodded, "Not to mention the dangerous opponents you'll be facing in the melee."

Lily cast an eye to Ryuu, "So, Miss Ryuu has heard of the competition then?"

Ryuu nodded.

Otohime looked between the two, "What competition? I thought Freya Familia wasn't allowed to compete?"

Ryuu looked to the former princess, "Yes, but there's still Loki Familia and Freya's proxy Familia…"

Elwin frowned, "Proxy Familia? What do you mean?"

"Baldr Familia," answered Hestia, "Hephaistos told me about them. Ever since Freya was barred from the rank-up tournament, she found a Familia to compete for her. She's been helping them train and taking them down of expeditions deep in the dungeon. Then, if any of their members began to show promise and become strong, she snatched them up. Now, they'll be competing for level-ups for her. Before, Baldr Familia were a bunch of nobodies. Like Apollo Familia, they had a lot of members but no one of worth. Then Freya's executives started to train them how to fight. They lost last year, but now they'll have a year's worth of training with Orario's best. Not to mention, I'm sure Freya has outfitted them with the best equipment."

Those that were competing let the information sink in. Bell sat there quietly, looking between Lily, Welf, Urashima, and Mikoto. The growing silence was interrupted by Ryuu.

"That's not the worst of it. Aisha told me that Hermes is submitting Lulune for level two single's tournament," said the elven warrior.

As the old Hestia Familia members cast nervous looks at Mikoto, the new members were left confused.

"I do not understand. Who is Lulune? Why are they a problem?" asked Urashima.

Mikoto spoke up, "Hermes Familia lie about the levels of the members. While Lady Lulune might be registered as a level two for the tournament, the truth is that she's a level three adventurer. Her skill and experience are miles beyond mine," Mikoto looked at her plate, "There is no path for victory."

Haruhime reached out to Mikoto, but the samurai did not respond.

"That's not true!" exclaimed Bell, "It might sound like a lot, but I know it can be done!" Bell placed his hand upon his chest, "I was able to defeat the Captain of Apollo Familia, and he was a level above me."

Otohime nodded, "Yes, Lady Mikoto! You cannot doubt yourself!"

The others piled on their encouragement, except for Hestia, who just sat there studying her child. All the good wishes did little to raise Mikoto's spirits. When everyone else calmed down, Hestia turned to Haruhime, "Would you mind cleaning things up?" Then she turned to the rest of them, "And why don't you lot start getting ready? I'm going to update Mikoto's status one last time before the battle."

Mikoto followed Hestia to her room. The Goddess let her child in first and then shut the door. Instead of getting ready to update Mikoto's status, Hestia faced the young samurai, crossing her arms in front of her chest. It reminded Mikoto of a similar scenario from over a year ago…

They had just fled the city. The battered and broken Hestia Familia had stopped in a nearby town. Hestia was taking the time to update everyone's statuses and check in on the well-being of her beloved children. It was now Mikoto's turn. While the young girl had not faced betrayal like the others, she had been just as quiet.

As Hestia updated her status, she asked, "Anything you want to talk about?"

Mikoto sat there, but then tears started to fall, "Lady Hestia, why do you let an adventurer as worthless as I continue to be a member of your Familia?"

Hestia sat there in quiet shock, unable to comprehend the information. Eventually, she said, "You think you're worthless?"

Mikoto thanked every God and Goddess there was that Hestia was staring at her back. Her cheeks got very wet.

"I am, aren't I? Compared to everyone else… there's nothing special about me. I do not have the brains of Lady Lily nor the ability to make magic swords. I do not have powerful magic like Lady Haruhime…and I will never be able to match Master Bell's abilities," Mikoto's hands gripped her thighs, "All I am is a weak little girl, pretending that she can protect people!"

When Freya Familia attacked the Xenos, Mikoto knew she failed. Never before had she felt so hopeless. As Lily devised strategies and Welf blasted away their enemies, she was forced to stand around and watch. She watched as the Xenos were slaughtered. As Ray and Gros…

She had failed to protect her friends. Just like how she had been unable to protect Chigusa, and Haruhime, before them. Her weakness always put the lives of others in danger… which was the sum of Mikoto's life, in her eyes. As she cried, she felt a pair of arms encircle her, gripping on tightly.

"Well, then you'd be right where you belong. I mean, you've got a pretty useless Goddess here to help you, right?"

Mikoto's shocked face whirled to face her Goddess, "Goddess Hestia! You are so far from useless! You are the beloved Goddess who forgave me! Master Bell would be so lost without you! You are nothing but kind and good!"

Hestia nodded, "And you are nothing but persistent. That is what you are. When faced with adversity, you keep working. You're not like Lily, who considers debt and other consequences. You're not like Welf, who lets his pride stand in his way. You're not even like Bell and Haruhime, who let their decisions change based on what others need or feel. You make a decision based on your beliefs, and you stick to it. You get incredibly stubborn about it," Hestia started to play with Mikoto's hair, "It's what I like about you. Most people would say you're adaptable and versatile, but I think they're wrong. You've just worked so hard that you're always prepared. You're a stubborn little girl, and I am so proud that you chose to become my child."

The tiny Goddess leant forward to press a gentle kiss to Mikoto's forehead.

Mikoto's eyes kept watering, "Goddess Hestia…"

"I'm proud that you're a member of my Familia, Mikoto. I think that you're plenty strong, but I'm guessing you'll still think that you're weak no matter what I say?"

Mikoto looked away and nodded in shame.

Hestia sighed, "Honestly, all you children are the same," Hestia clapped her hands together, "Ok, I've already started to help Little Miss Supporter get in contact with an old friend of mine. She's going to go train and learn strategy from the Goddess Athena in Altena. Apparently, in the same city is a large arena run by the Goddess Nike. If you want, I can ask Athena to get you a spot there. To help you train."

"You would really do that?" Mikoto's face was lit up with hope.

Hestia nodded, "If you really think you need to. But it might take a while to set up, and more importantly, it means that you'll be leaving Haruhime alone."

"Lady Haruhime doesn't need me. She hasn't for a long time now…"

That was the saddest thing that Hestia heard.

"Maybe she doesn't need you, but she will miss you. You're one of the most important people in her life Mikoto."

Mikoto wouldn't look her Goddes in the eye, "I need to get stronger."

Hestia looked to the heavens, "Now, where have I heard that before?"

Back in the present, Hestia shook her head at her child, "I guess all that training wasn't enough for you, was it?"

Mikoto didn't respond.

Hestia sighed before sitting down on her bed. She patted the spot next to her, and Mikoto sat next to her Goddess. Then, before Mikoto understood what was happening, Hestia had pulled the girl's head onto her lap.

"Honestly, you silly children. Always acting like the fate of the world is resting on your shoulders. Always thinking that you have to be heroes," Hestia ran her hand down Mikoto's braid, tugging it a little when she got to the end, "I'd be happy with you just coming home."

Mikoto hated that she enjoyed this. Having a Goddess who would take care of and pamper her felt good.

"No one will hate you if you lose," Hestia grinned down at her, "That said, even if Lulune is a level three, I don't see one of Hermes's kids beating mine." Hestia continued to play with Mikoto's hair, telling her how much she believed in her Familia. These weren't words of idle encouragement. Hestia wasn't coy enough to lie; all she knew how to do was speak from her heart. Eventually, the Goddess decided it was time to leave.

Mikoto nodded, trying to muster some enthusiasm. When the two of them left Hestia's bedroom, they ran into Haruhime, waiting outside. Hestia left the two childhood friends to check in with Lily and Welf, who would probably need a pep talk.

Haruhime was blushing in front of Mikoto, playing with what looked like a scarf.

"What is it, Lady Haruhime? Anything I can do to help?"

Lady Haruhime looked at the floor and held out the scarf.

Mikoto tilted her head, "Is this for me?"

Haruhime nodded, "Yes, Lady Mikoto. This is a token of my favour," Haruhime lifted her head to meet Mikoto's eyes, "I was just thinking…when heroes are about to go on an adventure; they are usually given a token for good luck…" Haruhime's tail twitched.

Now it was Mikoto's turn to blush, "Lady Haruhime, I would have thought Sir Bell was your hero?"

Haruhime shook her head, "Sir Bell might be a hero to me," Haruhime reached out to take Mikoto's hands, "But so are you. Ever since I was little, you've always protected me, Lady Mikoto. When I thought that I was a worthless prostitute, you came to lift me up. You've always been my hero." Then Haruhime smiled.

For the second time that day, Mikoto felt her eyes water.

After preparations finished, Hestia Familia left their house together. Lily wore a set of light armour over her blouse and pants, while Welf wore chainmail armour. Mikoto had her usual set of light plate armour, as well as even more knives and other weapons tucked away on her person. She also had Haruhime's scarf tied around her waist. Tucked into its folds was her most prized possession, Chizan.

As they drew closer to the stadium, those that would be competing today grew quiet and reflective. Lily made a point of fussing with her arm-mounted bow and her extra ammunition. Thankfully, Welf was able to finish all of his projects for the big day. Including the sizeable new sword strapped to his back.

As they neared the coliseum, the same one used for Monsterphilia, a voice like broken glass called out.

"Ahhh, Hestia Familia! It's been so long!"

The voice sent a chill down all the old members of the Familia, freezing them to the spot. The new members were quick to catch on. They knew that only one Goddess could cause such a reaction; they had heard the stories. The old members were too paralyzed to look, but Otohime felt no such fear. She whirled in the direction of the voice and saw the most beautiful creature in the world, the very image of perfection. That thing disgusted her.

The Princess drew herself up to her full height and placed herself as a bulwark against Freya Familia's pressure.

Behind Freya was the rest of her familia, Ottar on her right and Allen on her left. The Gulliver siblings stood out behind them, as did Hogni and Hedin. Freya stood out, though, the poise in her body showing off her overwhelming grace. Her silver hair seemed to shift to an invisible wind.

Otohime ignored that, though. Despite her carefree attitude and airheaded tendencies, she was still the third princess of the Nakamura Empire. As she glared down at Freya, she felt the Goddesses followers stare at her. However, no angry glares from sycophantic Familia members compared to the hatred she had felt from her brothers and sisters back home.

"You need to leave," said the Princess. Allen stepped forward, rage contorting his face at Otohime's ignorance. However, Urashima matched him. Whatever obsession Freya's chariot felt could not compare to the devotion of the bodyguard. They were horribly outclassed, but these two far-eastern warriors would stand their ground against this force. Next to them, the half-elf made to start chanting under his breath, a magic circle forming.

Seeing their new members stare down their enemies, the rest of Hestia Familia jumped to action to stand with them. Immediately, Lily and Welf pulled their captain behind them. Haruhime took up position behind Bell. Mikoto moved up to stand with Otohime and Urashima, next to Elwin. Finally, Hestia and Ryuu stood in front of them all, very protective of their Bell.

The tiny Goddess had to look up to see Freya, but that didn't make her glare any less intense. Freya was too busy smiling at Ryuu, though.

"Ryuu! I am overenjoyed that you're well!" Freya reached out to run her hand along Ryuu's arm, but the elf jerked away.

"Don't you dare touch me!" spat out the elf. Ryuu's voice was laced with venom and hatred. So intense was the malice in her voice, and disgust so evident on her face, that Freya stepped away in fear. A look of profound melancholy spasmed across the Goddess's face, but it disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

Before Freya could speak to her former friend, Hestia spoke up, "What do you want, Freya?"

Freya gave Hestia one of her small smiles, "Why Hestia, I've come to speak to my champion, of course. Where is my hero?"

"Ha!" barked Hestia, "Like I'd let you speak to my Bell!"

"Oh, is he really yours?" Freya gestured behind her, "Ottar."

The great Boaz stepped forward, "Yes, Lady Freya?"

Before Freya could order her most devoted servant forward, a small voice rang out, "Wait!"

Bell Cranel came running out. He presented himself in front of the Goddess of beauty, "What can I do for you, Lady Freya?"

Freya gave him a predatorial grin, "Be mine, of course."

Bell shook his head, and all of Freya Familia turned their glare to the boy. How dare he defy the will of their Goddess? Then Bell looked at Lady Freya, and her eyes flashed. The Goddess smiled, and Bell felt pulled forward. A deep primal lust almost took over, but then she arrived.

Just as Bell was about to step forward, Ottar pulled his Goddess a step back. An incredible force landed where Freya had been standing, cracking the cobblestones upon impact. Ais Wallenstein had arrived, sword in hand. She placed herself in front of Bell and stared down Orario's King. Ottar shifted his hands up to the blades upon his back. The rest of his Familia followed suit. The tension was thick, but it broke with the arrival of a mischievous, flat-chested Goddess.

"Aizu! Slow down, why don't you!" cried out Loki.

The rest of Loki Familia came with their Goddess and took up position around Hestia Familia. Orario's two top Familias faced each other down. In the front was the Braver. While his face smiled, his body was ready for battle. He stood face to face with Ottar. Riveria and Lefiya raised their staffs against their fellow elves while the twin amazons faced down the prum brothers. That left the wolf and the cat to scowl at each other.

Meanwhile, the Sword Princess stood in front of her bunny…no, that was wrong. Bell wasn't some pet. Bell was Bell…he was her Bell. She wouldn't let anyone take him away ever again.

The two great forces were on the brink of combat. Thankfully, before violence could break out, another woman that cared deeply about Bell intervened.

"Excuse me! The Guild will not tolerate violence in the streets!" proclaimed Eina Tulle. Behind her was the full force of Ganesha Familia, who was in charge of security for the event.

For a second, Bell saw Freya consider it, and it made his stomach churn. This Goddess was so obsessed with having him, with owning him, that she was willing to put her whole Familia in harm's way just to get him. The entire thing made Bell sick to his stomach.

Thankfully, Freya chose not to fight; she had other methods at play after all, and changes had to be made. Things weren't…perfect…yet.

She didn't say anything as she turned and left, her followers behind her. She walked away from the coliseum, seemingly bored by the whole event, except for her smile. Her smile spoke to the fact that she had seen the effects of charm. As they left, Ottar gave one last nod to Bell before he brought up the rear. As Freya Familia passed from view, Loki let out the breath she had been holding.

"She's one fickle bitch that's for sure," Loki turned to Hestia, grinning, "Looks like you owe me one itty-bitty."

Hestia pouted but nodded, "Yeah yeah, the next round of drinks is on me."

Loki nodded and started walking into the coliseum, "Sounds good! Why don't you lot come and sat with me and my adorable children! Gareth's getting us a box to watch the event!"

Hestia Familia merged with the executives of Loki Familia then. Mikoto, Lily, and Welf left to gather with the other competitors, guided by Eina. The guild worker gave a quick wave to Bell before she left. Elwin fell into conversation with Lefiya while casting furtive glances at Riveria, who pointedly ignored him. Otohime was chatting happily with Tiona, and Tione was right behind them, talking with Urashima. Near the front, Ryuu spoke with Finn. This left the boy with the girl, walking in side by side at the back.

Eventually, Bell said, "Thank you. For dropping in to protect me."

That made Ais's chest warm. She smiled and replied, "I promised you I would remember?"

In the face of Ais's smile, Bell could only blush and look away. That made Ais even happier. Not wanting to lose private time with Bell, she tapped him on the shoulder.

"Would you like to go buy some food before the fighting starts?"

Bell nodded, happy for the excuse, "Yes please," now Bell smiled, "Let me guess though, we're getting Potato Puffs, aren't we?"

Ais nodded and led Bell away by the hand. Since this was Ais, she was unaware of how her actions appeared. So, Bell was greeted by angry scowls from hundreds of adventurers. He was the envy of every man, and many women, within Orario. Finally, the two heroes reached their destination and bought their food of choice. As they began making their way back, Ais realized that she didn't know where Loki Familia was sitting. The poor girl started wandering around, trying to find her Familia, when she bumped into Lefiya and Elwin.

"Lefiya, why aren't you with the others?" asked Ais, tilting her head.

Elwin blushed as Lefiya replied, "Mister Elwin seemed like he was uncomfortable around Lady Riveria, so I offered to go sit somewhere else with him in the stands."

Bell looked to his Familia member, "Are you doing ok Elwin?"

The half-elf nodded, "No need to worry, Bell. I'll just stick to Thousand-Elf for now. You guys should head to the others." He couldn't look Bell in the eyes, ashamed of his cowardice.

He was saved from further explanation when Ais said, "Oh! Actually, we don't know where Loki and the others are sitting. Where are they?"

Lefiya explained where the Loki Familia executives' box was and then left with Elwin. The elven mage waved goodbye to Ais and made sure to send Bell a menacing glare. As she walked by, Bell thought he heard her whisper, "You hurt her, and I will end you, Bell Cranel."

After receiving that ominous threat, the two adventurers joined their Familias at the box near the top of the coliseum. Hestia glared a little at Bell walking in with Ais, but she said nothing. Looking over the arena were Gareth and Ryuu, with Gareth occasionally glancing over at the elf.

Eventually, the dwarf spoke, "I think I know you. You were that little elf lady that used to hang around with Alise."

Ryuu's shoulder blades rose and replied, "Yes, that was me. It is good to see you again, Gareth."

Gareth chuckled sadly, "You know, I always did worry about what happened to you. I knew Alise cared a lot. Every time we drank together, she would spend a lot of time fretting over you. I know it's a bit late to ask, but how have you been?"

Ryuu looked at Bell and gave him a soft smile, "I'm doing much better these days."

That smile made Bell blush, but then he felt a shiver down his spine. He turned to look for Freya, thinking she was the most likely culprit, but instead, he found Ais glaring at him. Bell left to escape and sit at the other end of the room, but Ais grabbed his shoulder, keeping him next to her. Her Bell was not getting away.

Down in the sandy pit, the adventurers started to walk in. Hestia Familia cheered and pointed when they recognized Welf and Lily. The smith had tied up his hair into a ponytail, and the prum had donned her adventuring cloak. They took up positions at their designated spots on the edges of the arena.

There were fifty sets of adventurers here, meaning one hundred in total. Even in the large and spacious arena, things were starting to get packed. The center was still clear, thankfully, as each familia's starting position was against the edge of the stadium along the wall.

"What do you think our chances are, Lil' Bit?" asked the smith.

Lily checked her arm ballista, "If Mister Welf's new weapons work the way they're supposed to, then we should be ok. That said…"

"What do you mean everyone's going to gang up on them?" asked Otohime up in the stands.

Finn shrugged, "You're all celebrities at this point. Which means that whoever targets you is going to become famous as well," the prum's eyes narrowed, "Also, I'm sure Freya's encouraged some other Gods to jump in on the action."

Down in the pit, Welf scowled, "So that's how it is then, huh?" He readied his newest magic blade, the double-edged blade changing colours in the sunlight. This was the sword that would change everything.

Lily nodded, glancing side-to-side at their opponents, "Yes, which is why Lily recommends hitting hard and fast from the get-go. Keep moving and sow confusion in the enemy."

"At least that's what I would do," said Finn, "None of their opponents have any teamwork. If they all try and mob them, all looking for the glory of defeating Hestia Familia…"

"Then that's when we can set our greatest trap," finished Lily. Eventually, all the contestants finished filing in. All guild employees left, leaving the adventurers to stare each other down.

"Good morning, everyone! It is I, your announcer Ibri Achaa of Ganesha Familia, here to bring on the spot commentary!"

The loud voice rang through the coliseum and passed through pubs, where the competition was shown by the magic of the Gods.

Ibri's voice ran out again, "Here to help bring the best play by play commentary is the Combat God Takemikazuchi and the God of Mischief himself, Hermes!"

"Why, hello there. Thank you for having me, Ibri!"

"Why yes, thank you, Ibri," said Hermes, "And just to let everyone know, I'll be keeping an eye out for any would-be cheaters."

"Speaking of which, I think it's about to time we laid out the rules," said Ibri, "The rules are: no killing, no dismembering, no using poisons or potions, no leaving the area of the stadium, and the only equipment that you can use is the stuff in the arena, no outside weaponry! Other than that, all's fair in love and war! The games will begin when Lord Ganesha rings the gong!"

Standing on the highest point of the coliseum with his elephant mask on was Ganesha. Behind him was an oversized gong, for which he held the mallet.

"I am Ganesha!"

With that proclamation, the elephant god brought his mallet around in a great swing. As the sound of the massive metal plate reverberated around Orario, the weeklong competition of the Rank-Up Tournament began!

Just as the two master tacticians had predicted, a third of Orario's teams converged on the duo from Hestia Familia. That was their mistake, though, as a great gout of flame swept over them.

"There it is, ladies and gentlemen! Welf Crozzo has returned to Orario and his magic swords are stronger than ever!"

Welf swung his blade in long arcs, the heat and flames keeping opposing teams at bay. Adventurers tried to get in-between the timing of his swings, but Lily was there firing arrows with pinpoint accuracy.

"You know I don't think we saw a lot of magic swords last year, did we, Take?" said Hermes.

"No, we didn't. Most Familias didn't want to use their easily breakable magic swords for battle. Between the expenses, the storage space it would need, and how easy it would be to counter, most Familias opted out of using magic swords. After all, the only thing one needs to do is wait till the power of the blade breaks." replied the God of Combat, "That said, what Welf Crozzo wields is no ordinary magic blade."

Ibri spoke next, "What do you mean, Lord Takemikazuchi?"

"You could say that what Welf wields is the next generation of magic weapons. That sword won't break from constant usage; as long as he has the mind, he can keep swinging indefinitely."

At that, the crowds in Orario made appreciative sounds of awe. Down in the arena, adventurers finally started to get through Crozzo's flames. As that happened, Welf had to stop his constant barrage and engaged in close-quarters combat.

The mind-powered flames of his sword became more contained. Thankfully, the sudden change left many of the other contestants flat-footed. In their rush to take down the Crozzo, they started to attack each other and get in one another's way. It didn't help that there was a little prum girl darting to and fro.

"There's Arde! Her speed and dexterity are certainly on display, right Lord Takemikazuchi?" asked Ibri.

"No, what Lily's showing off is her spatial awareness," replied Takemikazuchi, "She knows exactly who's attacking and from where. She's then using her smaller frame to redirect attacks."

Just as the God finished speaking, Lily jumped out of the way of a spear thrust. That same thrust hit another adventurer who was about to bring his blade down on Lily. While the swordsman recoiled, Lily knocked his sword into the face of a third adventurer. Then the prum moved on, leaving the three fighters to take each other out in frustration.

After the first phase of battle passed, there were fewer and fewer Familias to take care of. Unfortunately, in the chaos, Welf had lost track of Lily. He was alone among a throng of hostiles. He was saved a need to search for her when he heard a tiny voice boom over the battlefield.

"Mister Welf! Lily is over here!"

Using her command-call skill, Lily gave away her location, which allowed Welf to join her. That also meant that many of the remaining Familias were able to track the two of them down. There were thirty teams left. These were the smart ones, the ones that had hung back. Among them was a pair of Loki Familia members and a pair from Takemikazuchi Familia. Baldr Familia was also there, staring down Welf and Lily.

One Familia made a show of walking up to Welf, pulling up their shirt to reveal red cloth.

"Ohohoho! It looks like some Familias expected to face Crozzo flames! They've armed themselves with Salamander Wool for the fire! What will Hestia Familia do next?" asked Ibri to the crowd.

Down in the arena, Welf smirked.

"These magic swords of yours? How far have you tested their limits?" asked the God Ptah. Welf had only received arrived in the Kingdom of Magic and this was his first lesson.

"What do you mean?" asked Welf. He knew that they would have to start with magic swords, but already he could feel his skin crawl. He was still getting used to forging the damn things; he didn't want them to be the only thing he worked on.

"In the past, you have been so blinded by your anger that you never considered the possibilities that your swords presented," replied the tanned God, "This is your first lesson, dream. Dream of new ways to utilize your magic swords."

"And after that?" replied the skeptic smith.

Ptah smiled, "Then, we make your dreams a reality."

In the arena, Welf smiled; this sword was the first dream. It was something he had thought of as a boy, a childish fantasy that his father and grandfather had said would be impossible. Welf reversed his grip on his blade, flipping it so that the blade's other edge was facing out.

The smith smiled like a madman, swung his sword, and cried out, "Tatsumaki!"

In answer, the other side of the blade whipped out the wind. A great gust spilled forth, throwing adventurers back into the wall. Welf Crozzo had made his childhood dream of a dual element blade a reality.

The cheers in Orario were extreme, to say the least. They were witnessing history in the making now. However, the ones cheering loudest of all were his Familia waiting up in the stands. They knew the importance of this moment, how long Welf had struggled to make his own path.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! I hope that you're all paying attention! Welf Crozzo has just unveiled the first-ever dual-element magic sword!" cried out Ibri.

Welf smiled like a child, using his blade like a toy as he created tornado after tornado. Those same Familias that had been so proud of their salamander wool were now running in terror at Welf's abilities. Not that they could get very far. Wherever they ran, Lilliruca was there to stop them. Her shots were spot on, hitting adventurers left and right. The teamwork and trust of the two were evident. Lily and Welf bickered like cats and dogs, but all that bickering just hid a deep foundation of trust. The two of them worked in tandem, not needing to communicate.

Welf aimed low and knocked adventurers into the air. Then Lily was able to jump and attack, slamming them into the ground. They even did the reverse, with Lily knocking adventurers off their feet; Welf would follow up with a gust that blasted them into the wall. Anybody left standing after that was soon peppered with arrow bolts.

As soon as the battle started, it ended with the sound of another reverberating hit from the gong.

All Familias stopped battling, surrounded by the unconscious forms of their comrades. When everything was settled, there were sixteen remaining teams. Among their numbers were Takemikazuchi, Loki, and Baldr Familia. Of course, Hestia Familia stood out the most. The most considerable amount of unconscious bodies was scattered at their feet, a testament to the battle they had faced.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! You saw it here first! Hestia Familia's climactic return and the unveiling of the newest Crozzo blade! We will now take a short break for lunch and return for this afternoon's singles tournament!"

Orario's cheers could be heard beyond its own walls. The incredible excitement was something else. As Welf and Lily made their way out of the arena, the poor smith was immediately swarmed with demands and requests. Thankfully, before he could lose his temper, Tiona and Tione arrived to lead him up to the stands.

When they got to the box, they found the rest of their Familia waiting for them with broad smiles. Before anyone could say anything, though, Tiona tapped Welf on the shoulder.

"Hey, Mister Smith! You wanna make me a big magic Urga?"

The sheer audacity of Tiona's claim made Welf break out in laughter.

The smith smiled and said, "Sure, we'll consider it part of the payment for this alliance." He would always make swords for his friends.

The rest of Loki Familia jumped at the opportunity to pile on their own requests. The smith was swarmed but accepted all orders and ideas happily.

Eventually, Loki and Hestia regained control of the situation. Bell was there to give his big brother a big hug in congratulations, "Congrats, Welf! That sword was amazing!"

Bell turned when he heard a "humph" behind him. He smiled down at his first ally, "You to Lily, you were incredible!"

Bell ruffled Lily's hair, and the prum girl thought she would explode in happiness. Finn also congratulated the prum girl, complimenting her on her planning and on-the-fly thinking. Gareth left to get food for everybody, and they had a mini celebration for their first victory. The celebration ended quickly, though, as the next round was starting to take shape.

Hestia Familia cheered when they saw Mikoto stride in, her movements poised like a spring.

"She looks calm," commented Tione.

"If I had to guess, the sense of familiarity gifted to her by being in an arena is helping her nerves. The context is giving her reassurance," replied Ryuu. Tione hummed in agreement.

Down in the arena, Mikoto kept herself busy by checking her armour and equipment. The ritual had a calming effect and helped her ignore all the deadly stares she received from the other contestants.

"It seems like target number one is going to be Hestia Familia again," said Ibri.

The crowds heard Takemikazuchi hum while Hermes commented, "Right, Take, Mikoto's kind of your adopted daughter, isn't she?"

"She is, which is why I can say with a certain amount of certainty, don't take your eyes off of her."

"Oh, that isn't your own personal bias coming through?"

"Maybe it is, but I stand by it."

"Thank you for the commentary!" Interrupted Ibri, "Now folks, we fight at the sound of the gong! Take it away, Lord Ganesha!"

"I am Ganesha!" called out the God.

The sound of the gong went, and Mikoto was off. Her katana in one hand, a long knife in the other, she whirled through the battlefield. The girl was never in one place for long, keeping her opponents on their toes.

It was the end of Mikoto's first day fighting as a gladiator. She was with Goddess Nike, who took her in to train off a letter from Goddess Hestia. Apparently, the two of them had been neighbours up in Heaven.

"You fight well, Yamato," said Nike, "That said, you must work on your approach to multiple opponents. Combat will not always be a duel. Often, you will be forced to fight off many opponents."

"And how do I accomplish this, Lady Nike?" asked Mikoto, hoping to glean whatever knowledge she could from her new mentor.

Nike gave the samurai a grim look, "Before, you learned how to wield weapons. You used them well. Now, you will become the weapon. I cannot promise that this will be easy, and you might hate yourself at the end of it. Knowing all that, do you want to continue?"

Mikoto nodded, "Please, I will do anything!"

Nike nodded, "In respect for your determination, I will help you. Tomorrow you will begin training with my right-hand man, the God Horus."

Mikoto smiled, happy that she was finally able to find her own path.

Mikoto didn't bother with these thoughts anymore, though. Instead, she hacked and slashed through rival Familias.

In the middle of a spinning strike, her blade got caught by an enemy's guard. The adventurer in front of her grinned.

"I've got you now, you lit-AHH!"

Mikoto didn't bother with the taunt. Instead, she let go of her primary knife and stabbed her opponent in the hand with a spare blade. As he reeled back in pain, Mikoto gave him a jump kick to the head. The adventurer's body flew into three others and fell to the ground, limp. By the time he landed, though, the shinobi had already acquired her next target. She used and discarded blades with fervour. Eventually, she started picking up and using other adventurers' weapons.

"I don't believe it! The Eternal Shadow is a force of nature, folks! She is carving her way through adventurers like a baker would a cake!" cried out Ibri.

"Is this another instance of spatial awareness, Take?" asked Hermes.

"No, this is some sort of sixth sense. She knows instinctually when attacks come and where to be to make the proper counterattack."

"Oh, any idea where she could have learned such a thing?" said Ibri.

"Yes, from what I understand, she spent six months in the Arena of Nike. If I had to guess, she's feeling right at home right now," replied Takemikazuchi.

In the arena of Orario, Mikoto's experience was one full display. Currently, she was using an adventurer's spear to beat its owner into submission. As soon as he started to fall, she used the spear to vault into a knot of other adventurers.

"Of course, she's not the only one making an impression. Your own Lulune is certainly making a good showing Lord Hermes," said Ibri.

"Yes, I'm quite proud of her!"

The adventurer called Lulune was dispatching enemies with ease. While she didn't have Mikoto's brutal finality, her blows were definitely the most powerful of anyone around. The dog-girl also made sure to keep herself on the opposite side of wherever Mikoto was. The crowd was gnawing at the teeth to see a confrontation between the two top competitors of this tournament. However, Lulune was under strict orders not to fight the Eternal Shadow yet.

Between the two of them, they had quickly laid waste half of their opponents. For their work, though, they had begun to suffer cuts and bruises. One adventurer had cut into Haruhime's scarf. Mikoto made sure to break one of his legs.

"You know, the Eternal Shadow is quite a brutal fighter…" said Ibri. He sounded afraid.

"I'll say. If I didn't know any better, I'd think I was watching one of Loki's amazon twins" replied Hermes.

Take spoke next, "Well, Mikoto did train with some of Orario's most dangerous women upon her return."

Said women began cheering from their respective spots. Their cheers came from Loki's box, the stands where a group of waitresses were enjoying their day off and from Hermes Familia itself.

Mikoto heard none of it, though. The cheers meant nothing to her. Right now, the only thing that mattered was victory. The only thing she heard was the screams of her enemies, just like Lord Horus had instructed her. The only thing she saw was her foes lined up in front of her. She left a gash on one person's stomach and dislocated the shoulder of another. When one adventurer got a grab on her, she bit their nose.

Mikoto was fighting another adventurer, unaware of how long she had been in combat. She brought him to the ground and stomped his head. Her eyes were feral, and her body was vibrating. With that final stomp, the gong rang, and the battle was over. When the sound came through, Mikoto blinked and started looking around. She didn't seem to know where she was. She looked down at her boot on top of another adventurer's head and jumped away. Then she realized that she had lost all of her weapons. She ran around the stadium, searching for her numerous knives and other assorted weaponry.

Up in the stands, Tione whistled, "That was one of hell of a match, wasn't it, Tiona?"

Tiona was hopping in excitement, "Yeah, that girl was awesome! She was all over the place!"

Ryuu smiled, "At this point, a match like this is trivial. None of these adventurers know what it means to fight in a crowd. Mikoto was able to use that to her advantage. As expected of my personal apprentice."

Finally, Mikoto found her last weapon and left the arena. Among the remaining adventurers from the single tournament was Lulune, an adventurer from Baldr Familia, one from Loki Familia, and one of her childhood friends from Takemikazuchi Familia. She nodded to the remaining fighters in a sign of respect. She had a moment of solitude before she was bombarded by her fellow Familia members.

"That was incredible, Lady Mikoto!"

In the front was Haruhime, who had launched herself into a hug. Mikoto stumbled under sudden weight increase and the force of impact but remained on her feet. Welf was next, clapping a hand on her shoulder. Her Familia herded her out of the arena into the street. Waiting for them was Loki Familia.

The sun was just starting to go down; the day had passed much faster than anyone thought. To celebrate their overwhelming victory today, Hestia Familia left for the Hostess of Fertility to go get drunk and have dinner.

When they got to the bar, they found Miach Familia, and Ouka and Chigusa, waiting for them with a table. The large group got to eating, and then came the drinking. Tomorrow was the official double's tournament, which meant that if Welf and Lily made it all the way, they'd have four long battles tomorrow. Mikoto got a break, so she could rest and recuperate. Since the Guild wanted this event to go perfectly, all injuries gained today were healed by the Dea Saint of Dian Cecht Familia. The Guild spared no expense for this larger-than-life event.

Loki Familia was there too, down one elf. It was the same for Hestia Familia; their half-elf was nowhere to be found. The two were walking together, wandering the streets of Orario. Lefiya was giving an impromptu tour of the city, pointing out her preferred shops.

"Lefiya, not that this isn't all interesting, shouldn't we be getting back to our respective Familias? They might be worrying about us," said Elwin.

Lefiya turned a deep shade of crimson, "I, umm, told Lady Riveria that we would show up later…"

Elwin pursed his lips, "Why would you do that?"

Lefiya summoned up her courage, "Because you're fun to talk to…"

Now it was Elwin's turn to blush. The boy pulled his cap down on his head, fiddling with the ends. He replied, "Oh, I…think you're fun to talk to as well…"

The two of them then remained in a perpetual state of embarrassment then, but they both refused to leave each other's company.

Back at the bar, Loki and Hestia had already passed the point of no return. Hestia had kept to her word, paying for drinks the whole night.

Both Goddesses were in the middle of debating their favourite children.

"No way itty-bitty, my Aizu's the best around!"

"Ha! That was a laugh, Loki, because the thought of your Sword Princess being cuter than my Bell is laughable!"

The others had left Riveria with babysitting duty, the high elf being forced to sit there between the two of them. As she drank water, she sighed, pinching her nose. Every once in a while, she had to slap the Goddesses' hands away. The two of them kept reaching out, trying to throttle each other.

The rest of the Familias were busy drinking and making merry. Except for Bell, who was stuck between Ais and Helun, who wasn't on duty apparently.

The ex-Freya member bared the full weight of the Sword Princess's glare. Every time she tried to even look at Bell, she felt the killing intent in the room rise. Bell was useless, unaware of what he should say in this situation.

Finally, the first to speak was Ais, "You're not one of them anymore, right?"

Helun shook her head, "No, no, no! I was kicked out of Freya Familia. As of right now, I'm not a member of any Familia. I'm just a regular old waitress! I swear!"

Ais's glare softened then, but she also placed a hand on Bell's shoulder, "Good, because she threatened Bell again."

Bell couldn't look anyone in the eye. Helun blinked, "How did you resist her?"

Ais tilted her head, "What do you mean resist her?"

"Freya's charm is legendary. When she makes eye contact with someone, she can convince them to do almost anything. How did you not fall for it?" replied Helun, directing the question at Bell.

Bell looked to the floor, "I won't say I didn't feel anything, but then Ais showed up. She came down and broke Freya's line of vision."

Ais felt her heart warm then, happy to have done something right for once.

After the hostilities were cleared and the confusion was removed, conversation between the three of them came much easier.

With that, the first day of the Rank-Up tournament came to an uneventful close.

Chapter Text

Welf enjoyed his routines. He liked to wake up early, and he liked to start his day smithing. Today, his routine was crucial to keeping calm. Especially since he was competing in regular duels. Yesterday, it had been simple. Anywhere he swung his blade, some enemies would be burned. Now, he had to have technique. He had to match these people blow for blow. He wasn't like Bell or the others. He wasn't a warrior; he was an artisan. He most certainly didn't have the finesse that the others had. All he had was his equipment. He had the things he made with his own two hands. So, he spent the first part of every day maintaining that equipment to ensure that it worked and that it wouldn't fail when he needed it most.

Welf was finishing up his and Lily's new combat boots when he heard a knock at the door. He turned to find Mikoto standing in the doorway. The samurai girl was clutching one of her arms, red dusting her cheeks.

"Umm…Sir Welf? I know that you're busy right now, but I was hoping that you finished my special request…" said Mikoto.

Welf smiled, "Yeah, they were the first things I did today. You know, your request was pretty interesting. I gotta say, I'm pleased with how it turned out."

Welf grabbed a pair of blades he had finished sharpening in the early morning, their metal glinting in the light. They were a pair of long knives, curved and serrated. He also brought out a couple of thick leather gloves from a box; they had metal studs embedded in the knuckles. Finally, he brought out a collapsible spear and some blood-onyx kunai. He wrapped all the gear up in a leather bundle before handing it over to Mikoto. The far-eastern girl stared at the collected weapons, a large grin splitting her face.

"Thank you, Sir Welf! I am truly grateful for your work!" Mikoto bowed to the smith.

Welf dismissed her with his hands, "No need to bow and scrape; we're Familia members, aren't we? Beyond that, I'm your smith. It's my job to fix up your gear."

Welf relaxed on his stool, "So, how you feeling lately? I imagine all this stuff with Lulune has got you nervous."

Mikoto's eyes fell to the floor. She nodded, her braid bobbing. Her arms fell to the side, hands closing into fists that shook, "I am afraid because I feel that I'll let you all down…" The sack of weapons that had made her so excited now hung limply off to the side.

Welf nodded, "I can get that. I feel the same way every day."

Mikoto's head snapped up, "Why, Sir Welf? Your equipment has saved our lives more time than anyone else!"

Welf sighed, "That's just it. Every day, I live in fear that my gear is going to fail. Every time we go into the dungeon, I worry that you're going to get hurt, or worse, because the stuff that I make just isn't any good," Welf smiled then, "You want to know how I get over that feeling?"

Mikoto nodded.

"I put my faith in all of you!"

Confusion blossomed on Mikoto's face.

Welf laughed, "What I mean to say is, I trust the fact that, if even my equipment fails, you guys are too tough to go down."

Mikoto stammered, "I don't…I do not…"

Welf sighed, "Listen, you just do your best and put some of your faith in all that new gear I made for you," Welf grinned then, "Besides, you're Yamato Mikoto. You spent a half year as a gladiator, and before that, you fought in the Dragon Valley and went to the deep floors. You stood in front of Amphisbaena and played a critical role and bringing it down. Underwater, crushed from the pressure and your own magic, you held onto consciousness. If you don't mind me saying it, you're one tough bitch."

Mikoto couldn't respond to all this praise. She blushed from Welf's kind words. The young girl left then, telling Welf that breakfast would be ready soon. Welf cleaned up his forge, hanging his beautiful hammer at the end. The hammer was a gift from Ptah, who told him to bring it back when he made a magic weapon worthy of the Gods.

He found everyone waiting for him at the dining table. On his plate was his favourite cuts of meat, grilled to perfection.

"Awww, you shouldn't have you guys!" said Welf. As he sat down, he threw his arms around the people sitting next to him, Bell and Urashima.

Bell shook his head, "This was Goddess Hestia's idea, not mine."

Welf looked to his Goddess to find her giving him a thumbs up, "Everything needed to make sure that you're ready for your matches today!" Hestia looked to Lily, "By the Little Miss Supporter, how's this day supposed to work? Any idea on the schedule?"

Lily gave her Goddess a stink eye, "Really, Goddess Hestia? You couldn't try and figure it out yourself?"

Hestia waved a hand, "Why bother? I knew that you would figure things out. Now come on, spill it!"

Lily didn't look at her Goddess. Instead, she answered the eyes of her questioning Familia, "What Lily has found is that the first round of battles, that is the top sixteen, usually take the morning. Then they have a break for lunch. After that are the quarterfinals and the semi-finals. Finally, after dinner, is the finals. Enough time for each team that progresses to be healed by the Dea Saint," Lily steepled her hands, "After that, the winning team stays in the arena. Their God or Goddess then gives them their last status update. After that, the winners retire to a private room to do the actual level up. The spectators are not privy to the actual status of the winning team. That information is kept private. After that, the Guild provides the valis awards to the first, second, and third-place teams. By that, Lily means the top four teams."

The rest of Hestia Familia reeled from the heavy dump of information that Lily provided. They sat in silence, considering how long this process would be.

"Lily has already confirmed that we are invited to sit with Loki Familia today. Mister Finn was gracious enough to extend an invitation. That said, Lily is guessing that Mister Elwin is going to be leaving with Lady Lefiya again," continued Lily, glancing to the half-elf.

Elwin blushed in response, "Well, yes, she did offer to accompany me to the stands again."

Bell blushed as well, "Ais has made the same offer to me." The poor boy was a mess in his seat.

Hestia glared at her first child, "Ahhh, I see. Well then, if you wish," Hestia pouted, "You may abandon me then."

"That's not- I would never- Goddess Hestia! I was just- I guess I'll tell Ais…" replied Bell.

Hestia looked to the ceiling as she shook her head, "Honestly, Bell, I was just kidding," Hestia smiled then, but it seemed forced to Welf, "Go and sit with Wallenwhatisit. In fact, that's a command from your Goddess!"

Bell's face lit up in relief, "Thank you, Goddess Hestia!"

Hestia turned to Welf and Lily, "Well, I'll be in Loki Familia's box cheering you on with all I have!"

The rest of their Familia added on their own words of encouragement. They then finished up their breakfast and made their way to the arena. Crowds were already gathering outside, many of them stopping to point at Hestia Familia. Many were whispering about their impressive showing yesterday.

In front, Lily and Welf paused at the entrance; they turned to find the rest of their Familia smiling. Hestia walked to the front of the group.

"No matter what happens today, I want you to know that I'll always be proud of you two, ok?"

Welf and Lily nodded. Hestia Familia filed into the stadium, Bell bringing up the rear. As each member passed, they offered some final words of encouragement. Finally, there was their captain, looking nervous.

"Lily, Welf…I just wanted to say," Bell stood up straight, "I know you can do this! I have total faith in you!" Bell looked down then, "And…I just…I wanted to thank you two for everything you've done for me. You've been helping me the longest," Bell smiled at his oldest friends, "If anyone deserves this win, it's you two! I know you can do it!"

Welf and Lily stood there in shock for a second. If there was a reason why Welf loved Bell like a brother, that was it. He had a constant belief that people would always just do their best. He had been utterly betrayed last year by Syr (who was Freya) and his idol. Any lesser man would have given up on humanity then, but it wasn't going to get him down. He still believed in people. Some would say that made Bell a fool, and maybe he was, but to Welf, that just made him a good guy,

Welf and Lily nodded in response before leaving to go to the waiting room. They followed the direction of the Guild employees until they entered a large room filled with benches. The dim lighting came from the magic stone lamps hung on the walls. The other fifteen teams were already there. The adventurers from Takemikazuchi Familia, and Loki Familia, both nodded, but the rest of the assembled warriors scowled at the two. Some grinned menacingly.

"Hey, Lil' Bit, you got that special gear I made for you?" whispered Welf.

Lily nodded, busy adjusting her arm-mounted crossbow, "No need to worry, Mister Welf, Lily has everything under control. This situation is proceeding exactly as planned." Lily made a point of clicking her new boots' heels and pulling her new cloak tight around her body.

Welf snorted, "Is that your way of saying, leave me alone?"

Lily turned to glare at the smith, "No, that is Lily's way of trying to keep Mister Welf calm!" Lily humphed, "Fine then, Mister Welf can get nervous for all that Lily cares. Lily will just beat everyone on her own!"

Welf chuckled then, the rest of the competitors now staring at Hestia Familia, "I'm sure you could, but leave some for me, alright?"

The two relaxed then, falling into their well-worn banter and ribbing. They both understood why they were doing it, but it felt nice all the same. If Welf had to choose a partner, and Bell was unavailable, he would choose Lily every time. Honestly, he would choose Lily over Bell in some situations. The little prum kept her head and was good at balancing Welf out. If Bell was his little brother, Lily was his partner in crime.

Just outside the stadium, Bell was waiting to meet Ais at their agreed meeting point. He was looking at all the different food stalls when he heard a small cough behind him. He turned to find Ais wearing a white sleeveless top and purple skirt. Her hair had been braided in pigtails. Bell felt the air rush out of his body.

"Do you like it?" asked Ais, looking at the ground.

"You look wonderful!" replied Bell, a little too loudly. Other adventurers glared at him and the way he flaunted his closeness with the Sword Princess.

Bell seemed to realize this as he turned a dark shade of red and mumbled, "The pigtails suit you…"

Ais felt her heart start beating rapidly. She thanked Bell and then led him off to find some seats. They were in the arena's middle rows, looking for the best spot when they heard someone call out to them.

"Bell, Miss Ais!"

They turned to find Elwin and Lefiya sitting a few rows above them. The half-elf was dressed as usual, in a simple dark green tunic and brown trousers get-up, but Lefiya had opted to change from her everyday frilly pink wear. Instead, she wore a plaid skirt with a white blouse and a red bow at her throat. Her shoulders were showing, and she looked terribly embarrassed.

Ais and Bell climbed up to meet them, Elwin looking between the two girls.

"So, I guess you both got dressed up then, huh?" said the half-elf, "You know, Bell, I think we might be a little underdressed for this."

Lefiya pouted, "Well, I am a little disappointed that you're still wearing that disgusting, forsaken hat of yours. It must be filthy!"

Ais smiled, "I'm glad you like it, Elwin. Lefiya was very worried about what to dress like yesterday."

Lefiya turned a dark pink colour, "Mi-m-m-m-Miss Ais! You cannot say something like that!"

Ais tilted her head, "But it's true, isn't it? That's why you were asking Tiona and Tione for help on what to wear?"

Lefiya buried her face in her hands. When she finally dared to look at Elwin, she found him staring at the ground, beet red.

"Well…Ummm, I think you look really nice," he said. Lefiya's heart almost gave out on her. Ais and Bell took the seats next to them, Bell smiling at the exchange.

"And just what do you think you are smiling about Bell Cranel?" asked Lefiya, face cross.

"Nothing! I'm just happy to see you two getting along!"

Lefiya scowled, "I doubt that! I'm sure you have some nefarious plot brewing, don't you?"

Bell could only balk in astonishment. Before he could counter, Elwin started laughing.

"Oh my God, you two really are that bad…" said Elwin, watching the elf and the boy argue.

Lefiya turned her scowl to Elwin, "And what is that supposed to mean?"

Elwin snorted, "That you two are basically siblings."

Lefiya spluttered out then; before she could formulate an answer, Ais hummed.

"That's what seemed so familiar. They talk to each other like Tiona and Tione," said the Sword Princess.

"We are not siblings!" declared Lefiya, standing now. She sat down again when she saw all the baleful looks she received from the crowd. She pointed at Bell, "That boy is a vagabond! He is trying to corrupt Miss Ais!"

That got a hearty chuckle from Elwin. Before Lefiya could respond, though, the first set of duelists came out. Two teams from some small Familias came out and did battle. Running commentary was provided by Takemikazuchi, Hermes, and Ibri Achaa. The first couple of bouts went pretty quickly, one team quickly prevailing over another. Ais and Lefiya cheered especially loud for the Loki Familia team. Then came the next teams, Takemikazuchi Familia versus Baldr Familia.

The warriors from the far east were undoubtedly determined, and their technique was nothing to scoff at. They fought using a wide range of martial arts. Not to mention, they had almost perfect teamwork. When one was forced onto the defensive, the other was there instantly, ready to lend a hand. The problem was, Baldr Familia had overwhelming force. They fought with ferocity and fervour, using dirty, underhanded tactics. They threw sand, taunted their opponents, and were generally unsportsmanlike.

"Why are they fighting so fiercely?" asked Lefiya.

Elwin hummed, "If what I've heard is right, they were trained by Freya Familia, which means they probably met the Goddess. If I had to guess, she's probably charmed then, making them obsessed with pleasing her."

"Charmed them?"

Elwin nodded, "Lady Hecate once explained to me the Gods and Goddesses of beauty could be so alluring that they could bend the wills of lesser beings. Such a thing almost happened once to me with Lady Aphrodite.

Lefiya's nose wrinkled, "That's disgusting!"

Elwin shrugged, "I mean, not like it's totally unreasonable, Freya is one beautiful Go-OW! Why'd you stomp on my foot?"

Elwin's question was aimed at the level five elf while he nursed his possibly broken foot. Lefiya looked away, pouting.

Bell winced, understanding the pain that the little package known as Lefiya could wreak. Then he saw Ais staring at him.

"Do you think she's beautiful?" asked Ais, face serious.

Bell felt like he was in the deep floors then, faced with a life-or-death situation.

"I…well, she's not the most beautiful person I've seen…" replied Bell.

"And who would be?" pressed the Sword Princess. She felt a growing need to know who Bell thought was beautiful, what his ideal woman looked like.

Bell looked away, "I've always that you were beautiful, Ais."

Ais had no response to that. Little Ais was freaking out in her head, rolling around while covering her face. Ais decided not to answer then, turning back to the fight. She caught the tail end of it; Baldr Familia had thoroughly thrashed Takemikazuchi Familia.

After that was the final bout, Hestia Familia versus some unknown Familia. By the way they walked into the arena, the challengers looked a lot like Baldr Familia. They had probably been charmed by Freya to try and destroy Lily and Welf. In their haste, though, they ran face-first into Welf's flames. As the unknown adventurers reeled away, Lily darted in to give scratching blows with a small dagger.

"Every time I see it, I grow more astonished by Welf Crozzo's magic swords," said Lefiya, "And now that he's made a dual element sword…"

"It truly is remarkable," added Elwin, "That said, it comes with its own share of drawbacks."

"What do you mean?" Lefiya tore her eyes away from the fight, already knowing that Hestia Familia was bound to win.

"That new sword is powered by Welf's Mind, so it doesn't break like regular magic swords. The problem is, there are two elements, so the Mind expenditure is really inefficient. To get the same flame power as a regular magic sword, he has to expend twice the mind," explained Bell, "If Welf's not careful; it can tire him out pretty fast."

"Thank God Lily's there," finished Elwin.

Just as he spoke, Lily jumped between both adventurers giving glancing blows to her enemies. Both adventurers swung their swords then, hoping to catch the prum, but she nimbly jumped out of the way. Instead, both blades kept going, and the two teammates cut into each other.

"Oof, that is a nasty blow, folks! Lilluraca Arde is definitely proving to be one tricky opponent!" commented Ibri

After that, the enemy's teamwork vanished, and the two members of Hestia Familia finished the battle soon after. The crowd erupted in cheers, then began to slowly disperse. The fighting would resume in the afternoon.

"I am Ganesha!" called the elephant God, calling an end to the festivities.

"Shall we all get lunch together then?" asked Elwin. The rest nodded, and the four of them made their way to find some food. Though Ais tried to convince them to buy potatoes, Elwin eventually convinced her to get some crepes instead. The four of them munched happily outside.

"Bell, would you like to try some of mine?" asked Ais. Riveria had explained to her that she should offer Bell some of her food as an unspoken apology. The high elf had also said that it was best if Ais was the one to feed it to him.

As she tried to feed Bell her crepe, Lefiya intercepted the food, catching it in her little elf mouth.

"This food is delicious, Miss Ais!" said Lefiya, without a trace of guilt.

The Sword Princess pouted, "Lefiya, that crepe was for Bell…" Then Ais remembered something Aki had talked about, what to do when angry at another girl over a guy.

Using her level six speed, Ais ate a quick bite of Elwin's crepe. The half-elf almost didn't notice that a chunk of his food was missing.

"Miss Ais! Did you eat Mister Elwin's food!"

"You ate the crepe meant for Bell…"

Lefiya was a mess then, not wanting to seem like it was a big deal. Internally she was fuming, though. Poor Bell and Elwin both almost had a heart attack from the exchange. The women of Loki Familia were going to kill them one day.

Back with the rest of Hestia and Loki Familia, they returned from their lunch and settled in to watch the quarter and semi-finals. Both of their Familia's teams had advanced to the next round, so spirits were high.

"Hey, itty-bitty! I bet you that if it comes down to it, my beautiful children will crush yours!"

"Ha, you wish Loki!"

Hestia and Loki had been arguing all morning, but this time Ryuu was in charge of babysitting. The poor elf was stuck mediating the myriad of their disputes. Thankfully, this meant that everyone else could watch in peace.

Finn, while cheering on his Familia, was secretly rooting for the little prum from Hestia Familia. That last battle had proved that she wasn't the same little girl anymore. She had an adventurer's spirit, and she now knew how to properly scan a battlefield for weaknesses in her opponents. She had become a force to be reckoned with. If only she would consider his marriage proposals…

"Hey, Captain! You want to share some of this crepe I bought?" asked Tione, jolting him out of his thoughts.

Finn smiled then, "No, thank you, Tione, I'm ok. However, I might be interested in splitting dinner later tonight."

"Really!" replied Tione. She felt her heart beating in her chest from excitement.

Finn had to admit, he enjoyed spending time with Tione. The only problem was that he needed to become the saviour of his people. Romance, and matters of the heart, would only be an obstacle. This was the cost of his dream.

Down in the arena, the first competitors came in. It was another two no-name Familias. It was sad to say, but the audience barely watched the fight. None of the big names were competing, so the poor fighting Familias got half the cheers that Baldr, Loki and Hestia Familia did. The next fight was Loki Familia. The box erupted in loud cheers as their Familia members walked out into the arena.

Loki Familia had a good showing, quickly dispatching their competitors. Their movements were methodical, and their technique was crisp. Which made sense; Finn had made sure to personally train all of his Familia's entries. It was his duty as the captain to prepare his subordinates as best as possible for the trials that they faced ahead of them.

When that fight concluded, there was only one bout left in the quarterfinals. The box erupted in cheers again as Hestia Familia lost it over their combatants. Welf and Lily strode into the arena as calm as one could be. Their opponents were another set of Freya proxies. They had come prepared, though, wearing salamander wool and aero cloth, specially made for fire and wind, respectively. That didn't seem to dampen Welf and Lily's spirits, though.

"Hey, hey, Otohime! Your Familia members look so calm! Do they have some sort of special trick? Any sort of special killer magic?" asked Tiona, bouncing in her seat.

At the sound of 'special killer magic,' Otohime froze. Mikoto was quick to answer in her place.

"While Lady Lily and Sir Welf both gained valuable skills and magic this past year, none of them are useful in combat," Mikoto turned back to the arena, "However, I think that the equipment that Sir Welf has designed will carry them through."

Urashima nodded, "True. I have seen his newest creations. If their opponents can match his new dual-element sword; I think it might just be time for Lily to cut loose."

"Oh! That reminds me!" declared Hestia, looking away from another confrontation with Loki, "Mikoto, I wanted to tell you while Little Miss Supporter is in the field! I give you my express permission to use all your magic tomorrow in the tournament!"

That statement certainly took everyone by surprise. Most of Hestia Familia agreed that Mikoto's magic was to be kept secret due to the possibilities that it could bring as an unknown. It was like Elwin's ability to use twelve different spells, Otohime's devastating magic, or Haruhime's enchantments. It was supposed to be one of Hestia Familia's secret aces up their sleeves.

"Goddess Hestia, are you sure about that?" asked Mikoto.

"I agree with Hestia; if Hermes wants to send in a cheating level three, then no mercy," replied Ryuu.

That got a smile from Mikoto. She loved using her new magic, even if it was supposed to be a secret.

"Hey! If Hermes is cheating sending Lulune, why don't we just report him to the Guild?" asked Tiona.

Tione shook her head, "No way, Hermes Familia is too influential for that. They've probably paid off some of the Guild for that very reason."

Gareth nodded while stroking his beard, "Too true, lass. They've got the Guild deep in their pockets, and even if we forced the issue, I'm sure that clever captain of theirs would find a way to fake it."

Loki hummed thoughtfully off to the side.

Bete tsked his teeth, "Doesn't matter. You either get strong and win, or prove how weak you are and lose," the werewolf swung his predatory gaze to Mikoto, "It's that simple."

The samurai was not deterred though, she nodded in response, maintaining eye contact. Bete looked away first.

Down in the arena, things were quite literally heating up. The flames of the Crozzo sword seared through most things, but the salamander wool held. Even the wind did little to help, the aero cloth stopping the great gusts Welf summoned.

That's when Lily switched out her ammunition. One of Welf's latest projects was figuring out how to condense his usual magic blades into a smaller size. It was a challenge given to him by Lord Ptah. The smith had balked at the idea in the beginning, but slowly stubbornness set in. The smith hammered away at his designs until, eventually, the magic bolt was born.

These mighty little arrows were single-use, and they decayed over time. Lily had to use them within a week of creation, or else the magic would seep out. For now, they were horribly inefficient but absolutely destructive.

Lily loaded the first pack of special arrows and shot at the stomach of one of her opponents. The arrow flew true, striking him in the gut. As soon it hit, the bolt exploded in a massive storm of lightning. Her opponent was fried.

"Incredible folks! Another new Crozzo magic weapon!" cried out Ibri.

"Yes, and this time it appears to be magical arrows. They pack quite a punch!" added Takemikazuchi.

After her partner went down, the other competitor was quickly subdued by Welf and Lily's destructive dynamic. Thus, the quarterfinals came to an end. Thankfully, the semi-finals started right away.

The first bout was a much-anticipated battle between Loki Familia and Baldr Familia. For anyone in the know, though, this was really a battle between Orario's two strongest Familias.

"Kick their asses' you guys!" screamed Loki.

The rest of Loki Familia and Hestia Familia piled on their support.

The fight started out well enough. Both teams seemed to be evenly matched. While Baldr's children were more ferocious, their teamwork was nothing compared to Loki's. The two adventurers from Loki Familia were quick to cover each other's weak points and exploited Baldr Familia's sloppy teamwork perfectly.

For all that, though, the enhanced skill of Baldr Familia was too much. Their drive to succeed, for Freya, was what pushed them over the top. It was heretical in its worship. Every time they were knocked down, they stood back up. The will of the Goddess drove them forward. Eventually, Loki Familia fell.

"Dammit!" said Tione, slamming her fist into the stone railing. The whole thing cracked, almost shattering. The rest of her familia was quiet. Loki, Riveria and Gareth left to console the losing members. Bete walked off, frustrated at his inability to do anything.

Finn sighed, "I hope that your Familia can handle this Goddess Hestia."

Everyone in Hestia Familia looked downtrodden. After watching the pure force that was the worshippers of Freya, how could they stand a chance? This wasn't even Freya Familia. This was one of Freya's flunkies. How were they supposed to compete with the real deal? Forget the tournament; their entire future was looking bleak.

Hestia didn't look put out, though. She just leaned on the railing and said, "You know, we Gods love to toy with mortals. We love to make plans and treat you all like our little puppets. Just like what Freya is doing now," Hestia smiled, "However, they say that those who break from our plans, and surpass us, are the only ones worthy of becoming heroes."

Finn joined Hestia, "And you think that your children are worthy?"

His voice was not skeptical, just questioning.

Hestia snorted, "Aren't you the one that wanted to rope Lily into becoming the hero of the Prums?"

Finn chuckled, "Yes, I suppose so, and the smith?"

"That boy has been working to surpass the Gods longer than any of us."

Hestia looked into the crowd then, searching until she found Hephaistos sitting next to Miach.

"Hey Finn, would it be ok if I invited Hephaistos up here to watch the last couple of matches?"

"Oh, you think that Welf Crozzo and Lilluruca will advance to the finals?"

"I know they will."

When the Goddess finished, Lily and Welf entered for their semi-final match. The two of them ignored their opponents, preferring to bicker with each other. When Ganesha finally signalled the beginning of the match, it was almost astonishing how quick it happened. One second, their opponents were launching themselves at Hestia Familia, the next, they were face down in mini craters. Those with enhanced eyesight would later say they say the little supporter jump up and fire an arrow right on top of her opponents. The resulting explosion sent them down so fast that the shockwave knocked them out cold. Just like that, Hestia Familia advanced to the finals. Ganesha called for a break for dinner.

"Do you think we'd be able to go talk to them?" asked Otohime.

Hestia shook her head, "No, and even if we could, I wouldn't recommend it. We'd probably only distract them."

Hestia Familia left to get dinner then. On their way out, they ran into Bell and the others watching with him. Hestia invited Lefiya and Ais to enjoy dinner, saying that most of Loki Familia had scattered. The entire Familia ate at an open-air terrace restaurant. Ais was a little put-out, though. Ryuu and Hestia had both claimed the spots next to Bell, and Haruhime sat across from him. The Sword Princess pouted then, unable to be in a position to talk to Bell. Instead, she had sat between Elwin and Lefiya, who also both seemed upset for some reason.

When they finished dinner, they made their way back to Loki's box seats, Hephaistos in tow. The Goddess of the forge was grateful for the opportunity to watch her Welf from a better vantage. Ais, Bell, Elwin, and Lefiya all agreed to join them, even if Elwin looked a bit nervous. Seeing his unease, Lefiya took his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She also refused to look him in the face. Down in the arena, the two last teams were gearing up for the climactic battle. At least, one group was…

While Baldr Familia prepared, Welf and Lily were arguing.

"Mister Welf is too exhausted to pull off another big trick!" said Lily, stamping her foot.

"Oh, come off it, I'm fine, Lil' Bit! I know what I'm doing!" replied Welf.

"Well, it seems as if the wonderful teamwork we saw previously is falling apart, folks!" commented Ibri.

Takemikazuchi chuckled, "No, I know these two particular adventurers, and this is what they do. If anything, this bickering shows how relaxed they are in this situation. It shows that they're ready."

"Well, they certainly have been cutting their way through this tournament. That said, their opponents are no pushovers!"

"True, Baldr Familia has utterly destroyed all the competition they've faced," Hermes gave a beat, "However, I think this match will be the most interesting. I don't think we've seen the last of Welf Crozzo's magic bag of tricks."

"I am Ganesha!" declared the God atop the stadium wall. That cut the commentators chatter away, the arena waiting in silence as the sunset. Then the gong rang. Baldr Familia attacked first, dashing in like madmen.

As Welf swung his sword, the flames washed out like a wave. Their opponents were quick to slide underneath the fire, though. They hopped up, using their momentum to launch themselves at Hestia Familia.

Their bodies crashed into Welf, knocking him off his feet. They kept their focus on him, knowing that his magic swords were the only real problem. Of course, that would be their downfall. Lily did not take well to being forgotten. The little prum girl took out one of her special arrows and launched it point-blank. This time, the magical effect was ice. Frost followed the arrow as it soared across the battlefield.

The two Freya thugs dodged out of the way, giving Welf time to recover, but it didn't matter. Lily was hoping for that, actually. When the arrow hit the ground, a sheet of ice exploded over the floor of the arena.

"Incredible! Liliruca Arde has transformed the floor of the arena into a large sheet of ice!"

"Well, would you look at that? I think that was the plan all along," added Hermes.

As Baldr Familia tried to pick themselves off the ground, their legs gave way. They kept slipping and falling on the slippery surface. Meanwhile, Lily and Welf just pulled off the bottom of their shoes. On the underside was a set of small metal spikes that bit into the ice. This modification enabled them free movement around the arena.

"Baldr Familia is quite literally off-balance at this point!" shouted Ibri.

The stadium erupted in cheers, and laughter, then. None louder than those in the Loki Familia's executive box.

Due to the nature of the new arena, Welf was forced to switch to the other side of the blade. The wind howled then as the smith launched miniature tornados at his opponents. With no way to hold onto the ground, Baldr Familia was forced into the air.

"Ladies, you better watch out, as this one will sweep you off your feet!"

"Now, now, Ibri, everyone knows that Welf Crozzo, the ever-burning Ignis, only has eyes for one woman…right Hephaistos?"

The poor Goddess of the Forge was now blushing furiously. Hestia and Loki were both dealing out generous amounts of teasing.

As Baldr Familia rose, though, one of their members started chanting. He thrust his arms out, one towards the ground and one towards his companion. A stream of what appeared to be magical rope appeared from both hands, tying them both to the ground. The two from Baldr Familia knew that all they had to do was survive. As much as he had time to recover between bouts, Welf Crozzo had exhausted himself today. Added to that, Lily couldn't fire any arrows because the wind would knock them off course. Eventually, Welf had to stop the wind so he didn't pass out. For all that, though, he was still on his last legs, Mind wise.

So, Baldr Familia came crashing down. Their landing sent an impact through the ice, leaving shards everywhere. The two were quick to follow with a barrage of punches and kicks. Lily was sent flying by a spin-kick to the stomach, and Welf doubled over from a punch to the gut. As he felt the bile rise in his throat, he turned to his partner. Lily nodded. It was now do-or-die time.

Welf jumped back to get some distance for himself before raising his new blade into the sky. Baldr Familia hesitated at this new tactic, caught off-guard. That moment was all the smith needed. Before, when Welf used the blade, only one side would shine. This shimmer was based upon which element was being used. Now though, the whole blade glowed, and Welf Crozzo roared.

"Hii Tatsumaki!"

The winds picked up again, and the heat in the arena rose. It was once said that Crozzo Magic swords could burn the sea, but that wasn't good enough for Welf. He wanted his blades to go beyond that. His fire would scorch the heavens itself!

A tremendous tornado of flames rose on the battlefield. Baldr Familia tried to protect themselves from the overwhelming heat, but it was no use. They felt their superior grade salamander wool burn away in the face of these flames. There was no such thing as heat resistance in this tornado. Unseen to them, Lily darted around the arena, seemingly at random. Her new cloak was the one thing that could stand up to this heat because Welf had designed it specifically for that purpose. He had crafted it using materials from the Dragon Valley.

Welf's ultimate move came at a cost, though. The force was too much for Welf's body to handle, and he could only hold the inferno for a minute or so. Then, he suffered mind down and fell unconscious.

As the flames died down, Baldr Familia struggled to hold on. They felt themselves slipping into unconsciousness. If that great inferno had raged for a couple seconds more, they surely would have fell. Thankfully, all that was left was the little insignificant prum. Their clothing fell to tatters around them, singed from the fire. Ten feet away stood Liliruca Arde, smiling.

As they began making their way forward, Lily called out, "Lily would be careful if she was you!"

The two stopped then and took the chance to look around the arena. While they were distracted by the great gout of flames, Lily had been carefully jabbing a collection of arrows into the ground. All she would need to do is hit one, and a great chain reaction would take off.

Lily smirked, "The Goddess Athena told Lily that all warfare is deception. Lily hopes that you miscreants were able to learn this lesson."

Often, Lily was overlooked. Just like her race, no one spared so much as a passing thought to her. Now though, she would make them notice. She took careful aim and fired one single shot. The magic bolt hit the closest arrow jabbed into the earth, sending out a pulse of lightning, and then two more followed, caught by the electric pulse, then another three shockwaves came. On and on, lighting blasted through the arena, frying the adventurers of Baldr Familia with a constant bombardment. Their hair stood up on end, and they couldn't take a single step more.

When it finally ended, and the bright flashing stopped, everyone was left to look at the shaking figures in the arena. They had been totally paralyzed from the electricity.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Both contestants from Baldr Familia are unable to continue! Hestia Familia wins!" declared Ibri.

"I am Ganesha!"

Before Lily understood what was happening, her Familia had jumped down to the arena. She was then tackled to the ground by a certain over-excited princess. Ryuu and Urashima went to give Welf a mind potion, hoping to bring him back to the land of the living. When Lily was able to squirm her way out of the dog-pile, she found her Goddess standing over her.

"Well, Little Miss Supporter! We have a status update to give, don't we!" said Hestia.

"Ah yes! It is time for Liliruca Arde's and Welf Crozzo's last status updates as level twos!" declared Hermes.

Welf was roused from his sleep and joined Lily in removing his shirt. Kneeling on the ground, they let Hestia apply their final status updates. Then Eina walked out, carrying two brightly pulsing orbs. The crowd hushed then.

Eina smiled, "The valis reward will be delivered to you afterwards, but I'm guessing that you will want these now?"

Welf and Lily took an orb a piece, smiling at each other. Hestia Familia then proceeded to retreat to a spare room off to the side of the arena interior.

"So, how does this work?" asked Welf.

"Finn told Lily that one is supposed to swallow the orb whole, like medicine," replied the prum.

"On the count of three then?" asked Welf.

Lily nodded, and the two counted down. Then, they swallowed the level-up orbs. What followed was a burning sense of pleasure. It reminded Lily of Lord Soma's Divine Wine. She felt an all too pleasant burning sensation take hold of her body. It was excruciating ecstasy. By the end, they were both panting and covered in sweat. Welf had almost passed out again from the pain.

Hestia walked over behind Lily, "Well then, here's the moment of truth."

She pricked her finger and let the blood flow over Lily's back. Then came a squeal of excitement.

"It worked! You can level up Little Miss Supporter!" decreed Hestia, "All we have to do is choose your next developmental ability!"

Lily almost bounced away in excitement, "What are Lily's options?"

Hestia took a second to read Lily's back, "It looks like Synthesis is still there, along with something called, Initiative?"

Lily gasped, "Really? That's one of the same abilities Mister Finn has! Lily will choose that one!"

Hestia blinked in surprise, "Are you sure? What does Initiative even do?"

"It will help guide Lily in decision-making in battle! Lily wants Initiative! With it, she will become as great a commander as the Braver!"

That time, Lily really did start bouncing from excitement; her energy was childlike and infectious. No one judged her.

Hestia had to grab Lily's shoulders to get the prum to stop moving. Then, just like that, it was done.

"Congratulations, Lily, you're a level three now," said Hestia, waves of pride rolling off of her. Her children were growing up so fast. She then turned to her other familia member.

"And now it's your turn Welf!"

The smith presented his back, and Hestia proceeded to repeat the process.

"Alright, and you have the choice of Magic Resistance, Abnormal Resistance, and…Spirit Healing? What's that?"

"Huh?!" cried Ryuu, "He can choose Spirit Healing?"

Hestia nodded, and Ryuu's mouth opened in amazement. The rest of her Familia freaked out; this was more emotion than they were used to from their vice-captain.

"Spirit Healing is a passive ability that regenerates Mind when it is low. It is extremely rare; only the Sword Princess and Lady Riveria have access to it," explained the elf. She then looked at Welf, "How in the world did you gain access to such an ability?"

Hestia hummed, "This is just my Godly intuition speaking, but I think it has something to do with his blood and the fact that he uses so much mind with his new magic swords. I mean, he expends at a constant rate, even more so than most mages," Hestia looked over Welf, "Your body is reacting to that usage and trying to help you the best way it knows how," Hestia shrugged, "Honestly, I'd take this one. It's definitely useful."

Welf grinned, "If you say so, Goddess. Let's level me up!"

Hestia then scribed the new ability in, and Welf moved up to level three. Afterwards, the rest of Hestia Familia cheered in celebration. Unlike last night, when they got drunk with their friends, they decided to head home for a more modest celebration amongst themselves. After all, the fight had only just begun.

Meanwhile, in the depths of Knossos, a light elf and dark elf stood in front of a dark green door. The light elf pushed his glasses up his brow and raised a ring he held in his palm. The D carved into the jewel on top glowed, and the great door rose up.

"How long are we supposed to be here?" asked the dark elf.

"As long as it takes for Lady Freya's contacts to bring what was promised," replied the light elf.

With that, the two elves waited for the inevitable.

Character Profiles:

Liliruca Arde:

Level Three

Status:

Strength: I 0 Defence: I 0 Dexterity: I 0 Agility: I 0 Magic: I 0

Abnormal Resistance: H

Initiative: I

Magic:

Cinder Ella: Transformation magic that enables the user to transform into anything around their size.

?

Skill:

Command Call: Increases the area the user can convey orders to depending on how loud they're shouting. During a melee, the area increase effect is determined by the size of the battle. The user can remotely relay orders to people who have the same falna; the maximum distance is determined by the user's level.

Pallum Spirit: Boosts the effects of magic and skills in the face of adversity.

Welf Crozzo:

Level Three

Status:

Strength: I 0 Defence: I 0 Dexterity: I 0 Agility: I 0 Magic: I 0

Blacksmith: G

Spirit Healing: I

Magic:

Will-o-Wisp: Anti magic fire. If timed correctly, it can cause an Ignis Fatuus and cause damage

Skill:

Crozzo Blood: The user can create Magic Swords. Can raise the power of Magic Swords during creation.

Veritas Burn: Gives the user high fire resistance and increases their attack power when using fire element attacks.

Reinforcement: Repair of equipment becomes more efficient and quicker to do. Repairing equipment feeds into Blacksmith ability growth.

Chapter Text

The memory was a familiar one. Mikoto was in her fifth month of training. Every day, she felt her muscles burn, and her eyes blurred from the dust and the blood that would accumulate. She was sitting in her bunkroom, which she shared with a dozen other competitors, and she looked up past the iron bars of her window. She would see the sun, and she would look at the birds flying around the city. This deep in the heart of the city, the most common birds were crows. They often feasted upon the flesh of those gladiators who had died in battle.

Mikoto was so jealous of those birds, those damn scruffy crows, that she would stare at them all day until they left. One day, Lord Horus noticed as he toured the bunks.

"Ah yes, I guess I should apologize for all the birds," said the God.

Mikoto whirled to find him squinting at the figures in flight. His different coloured eyes studied the movements of their wings.

"What do you mean, Lord Horus?"

Horus brought his hands to his hips, "Birds fall within my domain as a sacred animal. Mostly falcons, but on the whole, many birds will flock to my aura. I've been told that all their cawing disturbs the sleep of many competitors. For that, I apologize."

The girl shook her head, her long hair swaying, "They do not bother me with their noise; they bother me with their taunting."

"Taunting?"

Mikoto nodded, "Yes, they taunt me with their freedom. With their ability to go wherever they please, without a care in the world."

"Didn't you ask Nike to take you in? To train you?" asked Horus, confusion written on his face.

"Yes, because I have to get stronger," replied Mikoto, "Not because I want to, but I have to. To save everyone."

The two stared at the birds in silence.

Mikoto awoke then, the smell of her favourite tea wafting into her nostrils. She sat up to find Haruhime pouring a cup.

"Lady Haruhime? How long have you been awake?"

The renard turned to smile at her childhood friend. She knelt down, offering the cup of tea.

"Not too long. I have had just enough time to brew you a pot of tea with some added ingredients from Master Urashima's garden," replied Haruhime, "This tea should help keep you relaxed."

Mikoto gladly took the cup. That memory had awoken something in her; it resonated with Hestia's message from yesterday, that she was allowed to use her new magic. Her excitement was making her jittery, and being jittery would not do today of all days. So, she took the tea, hoping it would calm her. Haruhime informed her that the others were waiting for them downstairs, so Mikoto geared up and made her way to her Familia.

In the dining room, she found the others already eating and enjoying each other's company. She smiled, watching them. Her reasons for half a year of hell were sitting in front of her. She would grow as strong as she needed to protect these people. When everyone saw her, they smiled, and she joined them for breakfast.

After they ate, they made their way to the Colosseum. Today, everyone would be sitting in the Loki Familia executive box, even Elwin. Apparently, he had made his peace with what was happening. Mikoto walked at the back of the group; Ryuu stood with her, giving some last-minute tips.

"Remember, ignore all their taunts. Don't let them bait you," said the elf.

Mikoto nodded, "Of course."

"Also, be careful of the sun and the sand. I would not put it past these people to try and blind you," continued Ryuu; this went on for a while, the elf not letting her apprentice get a word in edgewise. The older-sister tone that Ryuu adopted helped to distract Mikoto from her worries. Forget Baldr Familia; she had a much more significant challenge ahead of her.

When it came time to part ways, everyone wished her luck. Haruhime made a point of securing her sash once more, being the last to say goodbye. Then, Mikoto started making her way to the waiting room. Before she could, though, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to find Aisha Belka smiling at her.

"Lady Aisha? What can I do for you?"

Aisha brought her other hand over and now held both of Mikoto's shoulders in her grip, "Here to wish you luck and to tell you that I believe in you."

Mikoto was so used to sarcasm and criticism from the amazon that the sincere words took a minute to register. The young samurai's cheeks heated up.

"Lady Aisha! I am from a rival Familia! Also, as you should know, there is no chance I can beat Lady Lulune! She is a level three!" Mikoto sighed, "And I am just a weak level two."

Aisha snorted, "Please, you almost beat a level three before, don't you remember?"

At the look of confusion on Mikoto's face, Aisha shook her head derisively, "Remember, when you fought on the bridge to save that stupid fox princess? How you almost knocked Samira out? What level was she?"

At Aisha's words, Mikoto almost decided to hope, but then she shook her head, letting reality set back in. "That was different! Lady Haruhime's life was in danger! I had to keep fighting!"

Aisha's face contorted into disgust, "What's the difference? Do you think Freya is just going to let you live? Do you think she's just going to let my little sister keep having feelings for Bell Cranel?" Aisha poked Mikoto in the chest, "You told me once that you would protect Haruhime whenever Bell Cranel couldn't. Was that a lie?"

"No!"

"Are you going to abandon her?"

"I would die for her!"

At some point, Mikoto's rage overtook her. Her face was inches away from the amazon's, her fists curled at her side. It took five seconds of silence before Mikoto remembered that she was talking to a level four adventurer. She reeled back, her eyes wide.

Aisha nodded, "Good. When I entrusted that renard to Bell Cranel, I was putting her in your care as well," Aisha made a dismissive gesture, "If you bring that same fire into the arena, you'll be fine."

Before Mikoto could respond, Aisha left and blended into the crowd. Misha Frot appeared then, herding Mikoto into the waiting room with the other contestants. In this tournament, there were five Familias everyone was watching for. Takemikazuchi was undoubtedly an underdog, but the preliminaries proved that his adventurers were well trained. Loki Familia was obvious, and so was Baldr Familia, to a lesser extent. Hestia Familia attracted the most attention, obviously. And those in the know would bet on Hermes Familia.

These were the adventurers that Mikoto evaluated when she walked into the room. The adventurer from her former familia would pose little issue; she already knew how they fought. Baldr's children were liable to over-extend and over-exert in their obsession to please Freya. Loki's child would be difficult since they were trained by the Braver, who was no fool. The one Mikoto really focused on, though, was Lulune, the insurmountable wall. Mikoto noted the dog girl's laid-back attitude, how she wore her usual adventurer attire, not combat armour. She was confident in her status, bringing her victory. Mikoto also noticed that her weapons only consisted of just two daggers, probably of high quality.

Before the first fight began, the rest of Hestia Familia gathered to watch. Ryuu sat with Bell in the corner, Lily and Hestia joining her. This left little room for the Sword Princess, who pouted. Next to her was Lefiya, who looked at Riveria trying to talk to Elwin. The half-elf's responses were short and stammered. It was strange though, instead of being angry, like he was before, he seemed like he was trying to please Lady Riveria, just like any other elf. To Lefiya, this behaviour was very not-Elwin. Everyone was chatting and being sociable, even Bete. The lone exception was the Braver. He was busy looking at his thumb, deep in thought.

"Finn, what's got you so troubled?" asked Gareth.

"My thumb is aching, Gareth. Something's up," Finn looked around the arena, "also, there's something that's been on my mind."

Gareth's eyebrow quirked.

"If Hermes Familia wins, then his secret is discovered. It doesn't matter how much he's paid the Guild; everyone will know, and there will be consequences," Finn looked to Bell, studying the young adventurer, "I have a suspicion, and if I'm right, things are about to get very interesting."

Loki sniggered from behind, "Oh, so you realized it too?"

The Goddess's face was turned up in an arrogant smirk.

Finn nodded. However, he needed confirmation. So, he walked over to Hestia, trying to act casual, and asked, "I was curious about Mikoto's chances might be. Thought I would try and figure it out for myself. What's her status like these days?"

Hestia tilted her head, "I mean, C's and B's right now, why?"

"So, she'd be near the top of the level two's?" asked Tiona, "That's amazing!" Then the amazon frowned, "Still though she's up against a level three…"

Finn smiled, "True enough. However, you've beaten those odds before, haven't you, Bell?"

Bell nodded; his eyes focused on the stadium. As captain, it was his job to support Mikoto as much as possible.

"Yeah but, all of Bell's stats were S Rank. Not to mention a couple other things…" replied Hestia, trailing off.

"What is Mister Finn getting at?" asked Lily. The prum had been bouncing in her seat all day, excited to use her new status as soon as possible. However, whenever Finn spoke, Lily had to listen. He was as crafty as Hermes.

Finn kept smiling, "I'm just trying to see what Mikoto's odds are," Finn raised his hand, thumb pointed up, "My thumb says that things are going to be very interesting," Finn's grin turned sincere, "But only if a miracle occurs."

Everyone stared at Finn, not understanding his overly cryptic words. Everyone except Loki, who gave an all-knowing grin, and Lily, who was quick to put together what he meant. Her eyes almost popped out of her sockets. If Mikoto could do what Bell did, would the same thing happen?

Down in the arena, the first combatants appeared. By some twist of fate, the first bout was to be Mikoto versus the vice-captain of Baldr Familia, a man of fair complexion, named Hring.

"If he's the vice-captain, where's the captain?" asked Urashima, the gears in his brain turning.

Gareth nodded, "He's going to be fighting tomorrow for a spot in the level three tournament," Gareth levelled a look at Urashima, "Which means he'll be your main competition."

Urashima nodded while Otohime snorted, "Like any dopy level three fanatic could beat my Ura."

Back in the arena, Mikoto sized up her opponent. He wielded two single-bladed axes. He wore furs and leather armour. He looked to be a speedy type, probably a berserker. He would use quick but powerful attacks to devastate his opponents. His axes would cut into the enemy's defences and slash them to ribbons.

Now that her enemy stood before her, Mikoto was calm. This was not Lulune; this was not the challenge of the day. To her, Hring was just a minor obstacle on a path for a greater goal.

"Now, detach your emotions," came the voice of Nike, "Leave all uncertainty, doubt, and humanity outside the ring."

Mikoto breathed, her eyes closed. She heard the voice of her father over the loudspeaker.

"This first bout promises to be a spectacular one, folks! Both of these competitors have proven that they stand at the top of Orario's level two food chain!"

"Quite right, Lord Takemikazuchi! I'm almost sad that such a spectacular fight is the first one of the day!" replied Ibri.

Hermes chuckled, "Yes, well, I'm certain this will be the longest fight of the day!"

Amused at his own joke, Hermes laughed. Those who understood scowled. The God of Travellers was oh so confident that his illegal adventurer would win in what would be minutes.

Mikoto ignored that, though. The only thing that mattered was the enemy standing in front of her. She heard Lord Ganesha ring the gong, and then her opponent was upon her. She drew her katana.

For his part, Hring was ready to end this fight, just as the Goddess demanded. Freya had made it very clear that no child of Hestia Familia was to win. To appease his Goddess, he would destroy this little girl. He spun past the samurai from the Far East, his axes whistling as they moved in a tight circle. The girl's braid bounced as he passed, caught in his backdraft. He heard blood drop to the ground. With a satisfied smirk, he looked at his axes, sure he had made a great slashing hit.

Except, there was no blood on his axes. Still, though, blood fell. Hring felt something warm at his throat. When he touched it, his hand came away red. He turned to look at the girl, her blade now sporting a red line that dripped onto the sand.

"I must apologize," she said, "I almost took your head then. Thankfully, I was able to remember that death would mean disqualification."

Her eyes raged, and her tone was icy.

Deep in Hring's mind, his obsession with Goddess Freya wavered, and a kernel of fear took root. He watched the girl wipe the blood away on her pant leg.

"Now then, let me finish this."

She was on him then, like thunder. Each movement bore the full weight of her strength. Hring tried to keep up, but his axes hit nothing but air. This woman wasn't an adventurer; she was a shadow. As he tried to bring an axe from left to right, she ducked, and Hring doubled over in pain. Embedded in his abdomen was an assassin's knife.

A certain black cat waitress saw this from the stands and started to jump with joy. Her fellow waitresses joined her in cheering on their pupil.

As soon as he doubled over, he felt the girl grab his head and crash it into her knee. Once, twice, three times, and Hring was left dazed and howling in pain. He raised a hand and felt the malformed features of his nose. As he tried to regain his senses, a knuckled glove bearing metal spikes crashed into his temple. His mind went blank, and he felt himself falling to the ground. His last thought was how displeased Goddess Freya was going to be.

Mikoto watched her opponent crumple to the ground, unconscious. With a certain detachment, she removed her knife from his muscles. In her head, Horus cheered her on for her brutality. Nike said that she showed great finesse.

The crowd took a minute to process what had just happened. The vice-captain of Baldr Familia, who was about to join Freya Familia, had been utterly destroyed. He had not landed a single hit on his opponent. Hestia Familia had crushed Baldr Familia this round.

As Mikoto was making her way back into the waiting area, she saw that the next match was Lulune versus Asuka, from Takemikazuchi Familia. She turned to the Guild rep bringing her back inside, and asked if there was somewhere she could watch the match. The Guild rep seemed confused for a second but said it would be ok. Mikoto was led to a low area just above the arena's main floor but just below the stands. All around her, Guild employees bustled around to make sure everything ran smoothly.

As the rep stood with her, the Guild employee asked, "Did you really almost cut his head off?"

Mikoto shook her head, "No, it was a ploy to get him off balance."

Mikoto said no more as she took up position to watch her opponents. While she studied the dog-girl, another memory from her time with Nike resurfaced.

Mikoto was in the first month of her training. She had been fighting monsters, but she was informed that her next fight would be against real people. When she made her anxieties about killing known, Nike nodded and told Mikoto that killing only happened at the highest levels or for gladiators that were convicts. There were special rules in place for those executions.

However, Mikoto still had special training to undergo to ensure that she was at peak efficiency. Nike covered a variety of topics, but the most important was about one's strengths.

"Mikoto, you have good inner technique, but you need to get better at watching your opponents," said Nike, for the fifth time.

"I have been trying Lady Nike," said Mikoto, hanging her head, "But it seems I have reached my limit."

That got the girl a smack over the head, "No such thing. You just need to keep your eyes open. Watch how they move. Do they favour their left foot, a certain weapon? Are they fighting for money? Glory? Power? All of these are things you can study. As that pompous bitch Athena would say, knowledge is power."

They went at it again, and eventually, Mikoto learned how to study her opponents.

Now, she utilized that skill. She watched the acrobatic tricks that the dog-girl used in combat. She studied how Lulune got up-close and personal in her combat style. Mikoto analyzed every detail that her opponent put on display. When Lulune inevitably won, Mikoto returned to the waiting room.

Up in the stands, the conversation was relaxed. In all honesty, now that Baldr's adventurer had been eliminated, there was little reason to stress. In the end, there would be Hestia Familia versus Hermes Familia or Loki Familia versus Hermes Familia. When the first set of matches ended, Tiona and Otohime offered to buy lunch and bring it to everyone, instead of them all dispersing to the numerous stalls outside.

Finn took this chance to try talking with the prum girl, "So, Arde, any chance that you have reconsidered my proposal?"

Lily felt an ominous glare on her back. She suspected it was Tione. The prum girl shook her head, "No, Mister Finn, Lily has no interest in marrying you. Lily still thinks that Mister Finn should let his heart decide who he marries."

"I wholeheartedly agree!" added Tione.

Finn gave the two of them a rueful grin, "You both know why I can't do that; I need to create an heir that can save my people."

Lily shook her head, "If finding the perfect heir is what Mister Finn is after, why not just adopt a pallum orphan?"

That brought the conversation to a halt. Really, Lily had just been rolling with the conversation. She had always assumed that Finn Diemne, the Braver, the most extraordinary mind in Orario, had a reason for not adopting. Then she saw the dumbfounded look on Finn's face. Lily's eyes bulged.

"Has Mister Finn really not considered just adopting an orphan?" asked the prum. When Finn shook his head, Lily nearly tore her hair out, "All you men are just the same! The only thing you could think about is finding a wife to bed! Mister Finn was probably going to search for a harem of prums, wasn't he?"

The Braver blushed then, and Loki Familia's top brass started laughing their hearts out. Even Riveria was laughing at her Captain's predicament. The only one smiling was Tione.

"Well, Captain! I'd be willing to adopt if you are!" declared the amazon. She then spoke at length about how wonderful it would be to save prum children from the streets. In her heart, Tione really did believe this. If she could, Tione would adopt every orphan in Orario. She would become a mother to all of them and give them the loving family she never had.

"Yes…well…ummm…I am looking for a very specific…" Finn's argument died on his tongue as Lily's eyes hardened.

"Is Mister Finn saying that orphans are not already brave? That we do not suffer enough hardship as it is?"

At that moment, too many children were caught up in dark memories. Some had lost their parents: Bete, Lily, Finn, and Ais. Those whose parents had abandoned and disowned them: Urashima, Otohime, Welf, and Haruhime. And then some had never met their parents: Tiona, Tione, Elwin and Bell. Hestia and Loki looked on; melancholy plastered to their faces. They could do nothing to ease the pain in their children's hearts; they barely even understood this pain as Goddesses. Ryuu, Riveria, and Lefiya also struggled to reach out. They had all willingly left their families behind, and as far as they knew, their parents were still around.

Finn smiled then, though it was filled with sadness, "You are right, Liliruca; any orphan would have the courage I need. We're all examples of that, aren't we?"

With that settled, those in the box all gained a newfound respect for each other. They returned their attention to the tournament when they heard that the quarterfinals were about to begin.

First up to bat was Mikoto versus some Freya flunkie.

The samurai made sure to check that all her weapons were in place, including Takemikazuchi's knife in Haruhime's sash, before studying her opponent. When the gong rang, the two combatants came together.

Her opponent wielded a spear, and Mikoto responded in kind. While her opponent was capable, they relied too much on thrusting motions. They were obviously used to fighting monsters. Mikoto was no monster, though.

On one thrust that was extended just a little too far, Mikoto grabbed the spear. She yanked her opponent off-balance before jamming her own rod into her opponent's foot, pointy end first. The samurai then snatched her opposition's weapon and used it to deliver a quick series of blows. She wielded the spear like a staff, whirling it this way and that.

Mikoto's opponent was forced to endure the barrage as her foot was pinned to the ground. Unfortunately, Mikoto hit her a little too hard at one point. The force of the impact knocked the spear in her foot loose from the ground, allowing the flunkie to free herself. As soon as she got her bearings, though, her body had been nailed with a collection of blood-onyx kunai. Mikoto finished off her stumbling foe with a powerful kick to the head.

Again, the Colosseum erupted in cheers for the ex-gladiator. Mikoto didn't hear them though, she was too preoccupied with retrieving her weapons from her fallen foe. Next came the battles for Loki Familia and Hermes Familia, both proving their skill. Mikoto also watched them both, studying their skills.

Again, the words of her trainer, Lady Nike, came through.

"Why do I devote so much time to studying strengths, Lady Nike? Wouldn't I be using my time better to study their weaknesses?" asked Mikoto.

Also in attendance was Lord Horus, who snorted. He looked to Nike for approval before giving his explanation, "Strengths are weaknesses, little girl. Too often, they are relied on, and then they become a crutch. It is too easy to turn one's strength into a weakness."

Lord Horus had begun to hold Mikoto in contempt due to her refusal to kill. Nike did not like his tone of voice, but she agreed with God, known as the 'Avenger.'

"If you study your opponent's strengths, you can turn them into weaknesses," Nike smiled in her memory, "And if you can do that, then you can change the game entirely."

So Mikoto watched her opponents from the sidelines. Many Guild employees stared at her as they passed. Eventually, Misha Frot informed her that it was time for the semifinals.

When she entered the arena, her opponent held their great battle-axe aloft. His muscles bulged, and he declared, "I shall win today, Yamato Mikoto! Then, Lady Freya will give me her glory!"

He levelled his axe at his opponent, "I am Drudge, now prepare to feel fear."

What a silly man, thought the young woman. Mikoto had not stopped being afraid for over a year now. She lived in constant fear that Freya and her subordinates would hunt her down and destroy everything she held dear. She was afraid that Bell would be turned into some cruel puppet that danced to the whims of a Goddess. Fear had become her closest companion.

When the gong rang, Mikoto did not wait for her opponent to strike. The samurai rushed forward, her sword drawn. Drudge missed his first attack, his great cumbersome axe getting caught in the ground. As Mikoto passed, he wailed in pain. The samurai had used her drawn sword to leave a long gash along her opponent's side. Once upon a time, the sight of another's blood would have disturbed her. Those days were long gone.

Drudge gave in to anger then, his fighting becoming wild and erratic. This made him easy to dodge. As casual as she pleased, Mikoto stepped out of the way of each attack. After five swings, she countered. Her blade cut a diagonal across Drudge's chest. She then headbutted the brute before delivering a quick kick to a soft spot between his legs. When he doubled over, Mikoto forced him to the ground. He submitted soon afterwards.

All this left was Loki Familia versus Hermes Familia. As usual, Mikoto watched, and just as predicted, Lulune Louie won another bout. This was not an insult to Loki Familia. Their fighter had put up a great effort, but this was just too large an obstacle to overcome.

Up in the stands, Finn sighed at his Familia's loss. That was two times now that they had failed. He was about to join the others leaving to give their sympathies when Lily stepped in his path.

"Lily has something she would like to talk to Mister Finn about."

A little while later, it was time. Down in the arena, as the sun set, everyone watched as Lulune and Mikoto took up positions across from each other.

"This is it, folks. The moment we have all been waiting for. Who will win, the warrior returned home, or the adventurer with overwhelming might?" asked Ibri, his voice low in respect.

The moment of contemplation was broken when Hermes smiled, "Well, I'm going to have to put my money on my darling Lulune, of course!"

Takemikazuchi scowled in his commentator spot. This was hardly a fair fight.

"I have to wonder if she'll be ok," commented Tione.

"Tsk, all this'll prove is that the weak should stay weak. She ain't strong enough to be a hero," replied Bete. All Hestia Familia scowled then, except for Bell. His eyes were trained on the scene below him.

Slowly, not looking anyone in the eye, he replied, "That's not what my grandfather told me. He always said," the boy paused to take a deep breath, "'If anyone has the right to be called a hero, it's not the one who took up the blade. It's not the one who raised his shield, nor the one who healed the wounded. The only one who truly risks their life may be called a hero. Protect your friends,'" Bell blushed then, glancing at Ais, "' save the girl and face danger. It doesn't matter if you fall. No, that's just fine. Cry your heart out over it,'" Bell smiled, "' Within the defeated, a victor waits to emerge. Stay true to your wishes. Cry out your desires. And if you do, that's what will make you the coolest hero! Let your longings burn! Scream out your wishes!'"

At some point, Bell had started crying. He missed his grandfather so much. Hestia pulled him into a hug and stroked his hair.

Somewhere in the back of Loki's mind, a memory was tickled.

The rest of the adventurers, though, deep down, felt something stir from Bell's speech. The call had been issued, and they would answer. And deep down inside, they knew Mikoto would answer it too. That's just what heroes did.

When the gong rang, Lulune rushed in, hoping to end this battle quickly. Mikoto knew this though, she had watched Lulune fight all day. Lulune was impatient, eager to get a quick win and make a quick buck.

When Lulune jumped at Mikoto, the dog girl's status was too much to handle. Mikoto was forced to take the hit, her arm raised to brace herself. The samurai had brought a knife up to defend. Even then, though, she was sent tumbling to the dirt. Lulune smiled then, but only for a second. Then she staggered and looked down. There was blood coming from the back of her foot.

Mikoto stood up, brushing some dirt off her armour, "The muscles of the leg are the strongest but the most temperamental. In the legend of the hero Achilles, his ankle is pierced, and he dies. For that story, the muscles at the back of the foot were named after him."

"What in the world!" screamed Ibri. Orario cried out in confusion, and Mikoto's friends cheered her on.

Then everyone heard Takemikazuchi laugh, "She cut his Achille's Tendon. It's a delicate muscle in the leg. When opened, it makes the leg very difficult to walk on."

Mikoto smiled then, her plan a success. She only had a second, though, as Lulune started to attack again. The hesitancy and limp caused by Lulune's cut tendon only gave Mikoto an extra second of an opening, if that.

That was Mikoto's plan, though. She would take any advantage, no matter how minuscule. Any way she could shift the balance to her favour, even if it was just by a millimetre.

Also, with that extra second, Mikoto was able to bring her head out of the way of Lulune's fist. Her katana in one hand, and a long knife in the other, Mikoto weaved this way and that, just barely staying out of the dog girl's reach. For any blow that seemed unavoidable, Mikoto used her blades to redirect it. However, it seemed like Lulune had been studying Mikoto as well. On one such redirection, Lulune used part of one hand to grip Mikoto's blade. At that point, Mikoto had to choose, be yanked off balance or let go of her katana.

Mikoto jumped back then, losing her primary weapon. She pulled out the other assassin's knife she kept on hand.

"I have to admit, cutting my tendon was smart," said Lulune, who casually inspected Mikoto's blade, as if they weren't in a grudge match in front of the whole city, "That said, it won't be enough."

Lulune threw the blade into the crowd, effectively removing it from the fight. Then she was rushing Mikoto again. It was dagger against dagger at that point. Lulune couldn't risk losing her other leg tendon, and Mikoto could barely keep up.

She was able to keep up, though. Lulune's skill and speed were nothing in comparison to Tione's. Mikoto's weeks of training were paying off.

"Hey! When's she going to use that new magic of hers?" asked Tiona.

At that sentence, Lily rounded on her Goddess, "You gave her permission?"

Hestia waved it off, too busy watching the fight.

Mikoto had just lost another knife, Lulune breaking it between her own blades. Mikoto dropped the jagged hilt then. She went to grab another blade when Lulune jumped her. The dog-girl tackled the samurai, pinning her to the ground. She then began pounding on Mikoto with her fists.

Mikoto did what she could to move her head and dodge the worst of it. With one hand, she grappled with Lulune, while the other reached into her sash. After multiple beatings to Mikoto's chest, Lulune wrenched her hands away. She brought her fists together to bring down a great hammering blow. She was going to finish this match.

In her arrogance, Lulune asked, "Any last words?"

Mikoto then proceeded to spit blood at her opponent's face.

There was a pause when Lulune flinched in disgust. That was the moment Mikoto needed. She drew Chizan from the folds of Haruhime's sash and jammed it into Lulune's side with all her might. Her opponent's skin was extremely durable, but thankfully the skill of the Goibnu Familia pushed through. A burst of blood erupted, and the blade bit down; it sank halfway into Lulune's body.

As Lulune reeled back in pain, pressing down on the wound, Mikoto made her escape. The samurai's footing was unsteady then, and for a bit, she saw black spots. However, she controlled her breathing, and her vision normalized. Thankfully, Lulune was too preoccupied with her stab wound to notice.

"It seems Lulune is facing quite the challenge this time around!" said Ibri.

"Yes," added Takemikazuchi, "I imagine she is considering many options right now. Does she endure the pain and try to finish the fight quickly, or does she risk removing the blade and bleeding out? Quite the challenging position, wouldn't you say Hermes?"

"Hmm, sorry, did you say something?" Hermes sounded bored in his response. Either he had absolute faith in his child, or he just did not care about the outcome.

Lulune chose to leave the blade, not wanting to risk all the blood loss. Internally, Mikoto smiled at the development. However, she was in her own predicament. She only had one knife, a spear, some kunai, and her brawling gloves. She needed to either make more weapons or limit her opponent's options.

No time for decision making though, her opponent was upon her. Mikoto brought out her spear then and discarded her last knife. She displayed flawless technique as she spun the polearm. Her months of training beforehand saved her life. Before, her two styles of fighting were conflicted. She was either too feral, like a gladiator, or too honourable, like a samurai. Neither of those was right though, Mikoto was a guardian. Her mind and body fought with one goal, to protect her family, even if it killed her.

The spear's longer reach gave Mikoto some breathing room, but she walked a fine line now. If she over-extended herself, she would lose the spear. If she kept the spear in the same spot for more than a second, she would lose it. Thankfully though, Lulune had learned her own lesson.

Lulune was used to easy fights. That's what came of lying about your status. She wasn't used to her opponents fighting back so well. Twice now, Mikoto had dealt Lulune a severe blow. It was time for Lulune to start taking the fight seriously.

Lulune started employing her acrobatic skills then. Using her good foot to get off the ground, she used the momentum to swing her injured foot like a club. Mikoto was being backed into a corner, caged by her opponent's overwhelming might.

Thankfully, cages no longer held her down.

"I humbly preach to you, my benevolent War God, who is kind and merciful," began Mikoto.

"It seems that Yamato Mikoto is about to try and use her magic!" cried out Ibri, "Her gravity magic is potent, but what use will it be in such close quarters?"

Takemikazuchi was confused though, these were not the words of Mikoto's gravity magic.

"Deliver me from the incessant battle. Give me the grace to be free of my chains," continued Mikoto, "Free me from the shackles that bound me to this mortal earth."

Lulune dove in then, not intent on letting Mikoto cast her spell. She kneed Mikoto in the chest, but Mikoto bore with the pain, reminded of her time battling Ishtar Familia.

"Save me from horror and strife; give me the strength to escape the cage of war!"

Lulune continued to bring her knee up to Mikoto's chest, "Why won't you just go down!"

"Give me the freedom to join you in the heavens!"

At that moment, Mikoto used every ounce of strength she had to punch Lulune with her gauntleted fist. However, she didn't bother trying to beat the tough level three skin. Instead, she hit the top of the dagger that Lulune had left embedded in her own abdomen. Mikoto's gauntleted fist drove Chizan down to its hilt. As Lulune let go, shrieking in pain, Mikoto finished her chant.

"Kuro Kara!"

In a brief moment after Lulune had been punched, two things occurred. First, both her feet had left the ground, as she had jumped from the pain. Second, a great gust of wind sent her flying. She landed in a heap on the floor at the other side of the arena.

As the dog-girl picked herself up from the ground, a hush fell over the whole arena.

"She's beautiful," said Tiona.

Mikoto stood, hair blowing in the wind. Behind her unfurled a pair of ethereal black wings. Mikoto's magic had transformed the girl into an angel of annihilation. Those that witnessed her transformation would say that her grace rivalled that of the Goddess of Beauty.

Taking off, Mikoto flapped her great wings. She zoomed across the arena floor, feet skimming the ground. Her speed had shot up, transforming her into a bird of prey, diving after her quarry. She slammed into Lulune and lifted the dog-girl off her feet. Mikoto used the momentum to throw her opponent the rest of the way, using a modified version of the Full Moon Throw. Her opponent slammed into the wall of the arena, cracks spidering out behind her.

Mikoto's breath was haggard now. Her wings, while beautiful and powerful, were a massive drain on her mind. She had maybe a couple minutes before she would have to cancel the spell and resume fighting normally. This was compiled with the excruciating pain she had to endure. Blood dripped from her forehead, and one of her hands was barely able to hold a blade.

With her spear still in hand, Mikoto began a series of sweeping arcs. With her wings, she was able to keep Lulune at a distance. When Lulune tried to use her usual acrobatic flair, Mikoto flapped her wings. The resulting gust blew the dog-girl away.

"Again, we see Mikoto limiting the options of her opponent's techniques. Although, she doesn't seem to be targeting Lulune directly," commented Takemikazuchi.

Indeed, Mikoto's blows were not aimed at Lulune's torso or any critical spots. Instead, she seemed to be aiming at her arms and wrists. Finally, Mikoto saw an opportunity. She used the tip of her spear to work its way into one of Lulune's hands. She then twisted the pole and sent one of Lulune's daggers flying. The cost was that Mikoto lost her spear. Lulune had grabbed and tossed the weapon away. All Mikoto had left was some kunai. Meanwhile, Lulune was stuck with one blade.

Mikoto used the last of her kunai to make a couple of well-timed shots. Years of practice with Takemikazuchi had given her a precise aim with the little knives, and Lulune was slower than expected. The compounded leg and stab wounds had dulled her senses. The first kunai missed, the second skimmed Lulune's hand, but Mikoto's last kunai hit its mark. The blade smacked Lulune's hand. The throw was not strong enough to pierce the skin, but it was enough to knock Lulune's second dagger out of her hands.

Now neither of them held any weapons, but Lulune decided that enough was enough. The game was over. With her hands free, she jumped at Mikoto. The samurai tried to fly away, but Lulune was able to grab the tip of one wing. With her enhanced strength, she yanked Mikoto to the ground. She brought both hands to bear on the magic wing, and she swung Mikoto around in circles. The force of the pull and tear made Mikoto howl in pain. Eventually, Lulune let go, and the momentum sent Mikoto flying into the arena wall. Her magic wings disappeared. She fell to the ground and slumped over.

Lulune's breathing was shot. The pain from her wounds was unbearable. If the fight had gone on for much longer, she would have fallen. She smiled then and shouted her victory.

The arena cheered at their declaration of the winner. There were pockets of silence, though. A group of waitress warriors sat in shock. Takemikazuchi Familia hung their heads in grief. And in the Loki Familia Executive Box, everyone sat, the depression sinking in. She had been so close.

Everyone except a blonde renard, who smiled, her hope unshaken.

"This fight is not over."

Down in the pit, Mikoto grappled with consciousness. She saw visions. She saw a boy with white hair chasing an impossible dream.

'I want to be strong, like him.'

She saw a beautiful elf risk it all for people she did not know. Her arms began to move.

'I want to protect people the way she did.'

She saw the person closest to her heart, protecting a monster dragon girl. Her legs twitched.

'I want to guard those that I love, just like my childhood friend.'

"I want to be…a hero," whispered the girl. Her mind fought on, and her body answered its call. Though the sound was not really there, Mikoto would swear that at that moment…she heard a ringing bell.

Yamato Mikoto stood. Her legs were shaking, and she had no feeling in her left arm. She felt blood flowing over one eye. Her mind was clear though, she was not done.

The arena let out a collective gasp then. All around Orario, people held their breath as they watched the no-name level two stand her ground.

Takemikazuchi grinned, for he had been blessed with a wonderful daughter.

And Lulune stared, her body filling with fear. She took an involuntary step backwards, pain shooting up her leg from her injured tendon. Lulune watched her opponent look her in the eyes; Mikoto's gaze was as cold as steel.

"This chick, she's a monster," said Lulune to herself. It just wasn't fair; this was supposed to be an easy opportunity for some valis and a level up! No one had said that a monster was competing.

"Why won't you stay down!" cried out Lulune.

A wave of confusion passed over Mikoto's face as if the option never entered her mind.

Then she charged.

Her body screamed from the over-exertion. Her muscles burned. This was it, one final move. Lulune stood her ground, confident that she had the upper hand. After all, neither of them was armed. She prepared to block a blow to her head, certain that was where the attack was coming from. Except Mikoto aimed low.

Lulune had forgotten; there was still one weapon left to use; the knife Lulune had left buried in her side. With a sickening pop and a burst of blood, Mikoto withdrew Chizan from its sheath of flesh.

The absolute pain of having the blade removed made Lulune's head swim. In a millisecond of an opening, Mikoto brought the knife down at the point where the neck and the shoulders meet. Using both hands, she stabbed down. Blood exploded, and Mikoto felt a buzz go up her arms when she hit the collarbone. The blade sank, though, burying itself down inside the level three adventurer.

There was a terrifying moment of silence as people watched Lulune sway back and forth. The pupils of her eyes changed, and eventually, she looked at the adventurer standing in front of her. The dog-girl shook her head, tired, and let herself fall back to the dirt. As she fell, she whispered that she was done trying to find easy battles. Her body crashed to the ground, and the silence over Orario held.

Mikoto doubled over in wheezing breaths. She watched and waited for any signs of stirring. Eventually, the voice of Ibri Achaa rang out.

"People of Orario! Yamato Mikoto wins!"

The girl relaxed then and drifted off to sleep. Her body fell to the ground.

When she awoke, the first thing she saw was that she was not on the arena's main floor. Mikoto realized that she had been brought inside the Colosseum as she looked at the brick walls off to the side. The magic stones' lighting was bright, but Mikoto rationalized she must be in a bed, for she felt something soft underneath her head.

Why were the pillows so warm, though?

Mikoto looked up and found Haruhime's tear-stained face smiling down at her. Mikoto sat up then, her face a deep crimson. Before she could cry out in surprise, though, her head swam. Thankfully, Ryuu caught her before she fell.

"Take it easy, Mikoto. You won; it's over," said the elf.

"Yes, but Lady Haruhime!"

Hestia chuckled off to the side, "Haruhime was very incessant about this. She said that her hero deserved a special reward." Hestia looked deep in thought, "Actually, it was Wallenwhatisit that suggested the lap pillow.

Haruhime and Bell were both a scarlet red.

Hestia clapped her hands, "Never mind that, though! Time for your last status update!"

With Ryuu's support, Hestia was able to take a look at Mikoto's back. Mikoto took the time to realize that everyone from her Familia was in attendance, along with the Guild worker Eina, who held the coveted level-up orb.

Apparently, something happened, though, because Urashima eye's narrowed.

"Is there something wrong, Lady Hestia?" asked the bodyguard.

"Oh…ummm…how do I say this?" The Goddesses voice was shaky, "Well, I guess…congratulations on levelling-up Mikoto."

"I have yet to swallow the orb, Goddess Hestia," replied Mikoto.

It was Lily who spoke next, "What Goddess Hestia is saying, Miss Mikoto is that your defeat of the level three Lulune has qualified you to advance to level three, on your own," Lily nodded, "It seems that Mister Finn's theory was right."

Mikoto sat in dumb silence for a while. Then she said, "Wait, but does that mean…"

Welf continued, "If she levelled up now and then took the orb…"

"She would become a level four," finished Elwin.

They all looked to Eina for confirmation. The ex-receptionist was in shock, but eventually, she nodded. In the end, these orbs were one size fits all. At her confirmation, everyone smiled.

Before Hestia Familia could erupt in congratulations, their Goddess regained control.

"Ok, so you have two options for level three. There's swordsman, and something called weapons expert."

It was Otohime of all people who recognized the second ability. The princess smiled, "I know that one! It was quite common amongst the weapon masters back home! It helps you become more powerful with all sorts of weapons!"

"She's right. I believe that there is a similar ability called Hunter?" continued Urashima, "They are essentially the same, except for weapons instead of monsters. As Lady Mikoto continues to use a certain weapon, she will become more proficient and do more damage with the weapon."

"Then let's choose that one!" declared Hestia. At Mikoto's agreement, the decision was settled, and Mikoto became a level three adventurer.

Then, Eina stepped forward and offered Mikoto her prize for victory. Mikoto swallowed the orb and felt the pain of pleasure course through her. She almost fainted again.

Hestia proceeded to finalize the second level-up, picking the swordsman ability, and then it was done. That said, Mikoto still had to be supported by Ryuu and Welf to make her way home. The Dea Saint had stopped by and told her that she could not do any adventuring for a week. When asked what she wanted to do next, Mikoto responded, "I would like to take a hot bath, please."

In another part of the city, a certain God of travellers ran into a Goddess of tricksters.

"You wanted this to happen, didn't you?" asked Loki.

Hermes smiled, "Why, Loki, whatever do you mean?"

Loki scowled, "Cut the shit. You knew that if Lulune was caught, you'd be in big trouble. You were banking on Hestia's girl winning. She's probably a level four now."

"Is she? Well, good for young Mikoto then!" declared Hermes, who pantomimed a round of applause.

"Why? What do you gain?"

Hermes smirked, "Let's just say I'm fulfilling a favour for an old friend."

The God tried to walk away, but Loki had one more question, "The boy, who is he, Hermes?"

Hermes paused, but he did not answer. Instead, he began walking again, leaving Loki in silence.

With that, the third day came to a close.

Character Profile:

Yamato Mikoto:

Level Four

Status:

Strength: I 0 Defense: I 0 Dexterity: I 0 Agility: I 0 Magic: I 0

Abnormal Resistance: G

Weapons Expert: I

Swordsman: I

Magic:

Futsunomitama: Heavy gravity magic that crushes a given area.

Kuro Kara: Gives the user a set of magical wings. Actively drains mind until dispelled.

Skill:

Yatanokurogarasu: Enemy search within effect range also reveals hidden enemies. Effect is exclusive for monsters and only works on monsters that the user has encountered before. Active Trigger

Yatanoshirogarasu: Familia member search within effect range. Only works on those in the same Familia. Active Trigger

Chapter Text

Urashima's oldest memory is of her smile. He was a little boy, maybe not even eight years old. His father, the head of the Taro clan, brought him into the main household. There, he was introduced to the Third Princess Otohime Nakamura. She was the same age as him, but while he hid behind his father's legs, she stood in front, smiling.

"Urashima, I want you to meet someone important," Urashima's father maneuvered his son out in front. He gestured to the girl, "This is Princess Otohime Nakamura. From now on, you're going to start training to be her bodyguard. You're going to spend a lot of time together, so I want you to introduce yourself."

His father had told him how to behave in front of the Princess beforehand. However, he almost tripped as he stepped forward, but he recovered and gave a deep bow.

"It is an honour, milady. My name is Urashima Taro; I put myself at your service," said the little boy.

The official vows would come later when they were both just a bit older, but an informal introduction would do for now. Urashima kept his head low, waiting for the Princess to dismiss him. So, he stood there for ten seconds. And then ten more. Then, when a minute had passed, he heard giggling. He looked up to find Otohime giggling into her hand, the long sleeve of her pink Yakuta covering her mouth.

"I'm sorry!" she said, trying to control herself, "I just wanted to see how long you'd do it!"

Urashima should've been offended, but then he saw those golden eyes of hers. There was no malice or ill-intent. Her eyes were filled with joy and laughter. Then the Princess removed her hand and grin, showing all her teeth.

The little girl's smile was so infectious that Urashima felt himself start returning it. However, before he could, his father smacked him over the head.

"Control yourself!" said his father.

"Hey! That's not nice!"

Otohime marched forward, her attendants sighing and rolling their eyes at the little girl. She helped Urashima stand up straight and took a look at his head. While she did so, she spoke to the leader of the Taro Clan.

"You shouldn't hit your son! Not his fault I played a joke!" Otohime turned to her new bodyguard, "If you feel like smiling, then smile! That's an order from your new boss!" Otohime paused then and looked up in thought, "Well, unless I do something embarrassing. I wouldn't want you laughing because of that."

Urashima spoke before thinking, "Does that happen a lot?"

Total silence was his reply. The attendants had looks of horror on their faces. Urashima's father looked like he wanted to throttle him; he probably would throttle the boy when they returned to their home. It was all worth it, though, because he heard the chiming laugh of the Princess. She laughed and laughed, and Urashima fell in love with the sound of it.

He woke up in the present to the exact same sound. Otohime's laugh echoed around Hearth Mansion. For once, the bodyguard had slept in. His nerves had kept him up most of the night, anxious for his battle today and the tournament tomorrow if he qualified. Obviously, his body was exhausted, and the rest of his Familia had noticed and left him to rest. His primary opponent for the next couple of days was to be the Captain of Baldr Familia, Folsetti.

After he woke, Ura prepared his armaments for the day. When those were secure, he went downstairs to discover the source of the laughter. He found Mikoto holding a broken teacup, Haruhime trying to sweep away the mess, and his beloved Princess laughing in the kitchen doorway. It was the three girls from the Far East's turn to cook breakfast, but obviously, something had happened.

Urashima glanced at Mikoto's shocked face, "I'm guessing you didn't realize your own strength?"

Mikoto blushed, confirming Urashima's suspicions. Breaking a cup wasn't the girl's fault, though. Anyone who had suddenly jumped two levels would be having the same trouble. Overall, Mikoto seemed a little uncomfortable with her newfound abilities, trying to get a handle on them. Urashima was sure she would be ok though; she was a skilled individual.

Instead, he walked up to Otohime and placed his gloved hands on his hips, "Princess, instead of laughing, shouldn't you be helping your fellow Familia members?"

Otohime nodded, still laughing, and went to help Haruhime clean.

"My apologies Mikoto, it's just your face was perfect!" Otohime wiped tears away, "Come, let us finish breakfast!"

The three women then entered the kitchen, and the rest of the Familia came into the dining room.

Meanwhile, at the Twilight Manor, a little elf was standing outside one of her teammate's rooms, looking for advice. She knocked on the door and waited for its occupant to emerge. She heard a strange crashing sound, though, but eventually, Anakitty Autumn opened the door. Her black hair was dishevelled, and she looked like she had only just thrown on her clothes.

"Yes, Lefiya?" asked the cat girl. Usually, she was very kind and polite when speaking with the other Familia members, but now she seemed a little annoyed and frazzled.

"Umm, Aki…I was wondering…how did you ask out Raul?" asked the elf.

Following the disaster with Freya Familia, and Aki and Raul's win at the tournament, the two long-time partners made their relationship official. Since then, they had become known as one of Orario's power couples. That said, nothing had really changed in their dynamic. Aki still scolded him, and Raul still bumbled around her. The only difference was that they held hands occasionally and were sometimes caught sneaking kisses.

When Lefiya asked her question, there was a resounding yelp and thud from Aki's room. She had recently been promoted to an executive, which meant she was now allowed a private room. It was the same with Raul.

"Is someone else in there?" asked Lefiya, trying to peer around the door. Aki was quick to stand in her way, though.

"No! Not at all!" said Aki, a smile stretched across her face, "So, I take it there's a guy that's caught your eye?"

Lefiya, sufficiently distracted, blushed in response, "Yes, well…there might be. I'm still figuring things out… I've never done something like this. The closest I've done is when me and Filvis…"

Slowly, Lefiya trailed off. Even over a year later, she still could not get past what happened with her dear friend. Aki let the elf girl collect herself before she continued.

"Well, as for me and Raul, it was a spontaneous affair. After the tournament and watching Freya hold the city hostage, I just didn't want to wait anymore. Life's too short, you know?" Aki got a dopey grin on her face, "Probably the best decision of my life."

Aki glanced back into her room. Her relaxed posture let the door open a bit more, and Lefiya was able to peek inside. Where Raul Nord, esteemed level five, was fighting to untangle himself from the sheets. Aki paled when she realized what had happened and was quick to slam the door. Lefiya stood there in shock until Tiona and Tione found her.

"Hey, Lefiya, what's going on?" asked Tiona.

Lefiya gulped, "I saw something both utterly bewildering, but also not surprising in the least."

When the elf didn't explain further, the three left to find Ais. Today, they would still be using the Box with Hestia Familia, but Bete and Gareth were opting out of spectating. They were going to stay home and take care of some minor business. Riveria was also not joining them, apparently to let Elwin be more comfortable.

That left the four girls with Finn and Loki. They joined their Goddess and Captain in the foyer of the Twilight Manor and found the two whispering. They caught the tail-end of the conversation.

"I'm telling you Finn, that speech that Itty Bitty's boy gave, I know I've heard it before," said Loki.

Finn rubbed his chin in thought, "As do I. He said his grandfather told him that? A former adventurer perhaps?"

The two then noticed the rest of their party joining them. Together, the six of them left for the Colosseum. They met Hestia Familia halfway there, where Elwin was quick to begin walking next to his new friend. Lefiya felt herself smiling involuntarily at Elwin's greeting. Part of her felt sad, though. She used to react the same way with Filvis. As her thoughts spiralled, she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Are you alright?" asked the half-elf.

Lefiya nodded. The two walked in silence with their Familias. At the front were Urashima and Otohime, who was fussing over her bodyguard. Urashima took it all in stride, though, and when they reached the arena, he didn't even bother saying goodbye. The young man strode inside, ready to meet his destiny.

As the rest of them took up positions to watch the duo tournament's preliminary battles, a different conversation took place in the Tower of Babel.

Freya sighed; her thoughts muddied. Her reunion with her beloved had not gone well. Even Ryuu, who had been her best friend, had shunned her. Then there was the boy's soul…

"Forgive me if I am being presumptuous," began Ottar, his voice quiet, "But is something the matter, Lady Freya?"

Freya played with the cup of wine in her hand, "He's changed Ottar. His pure white soul has not returned. If anything, it's gotten worse."

Many had questioned Freya's sudden release of Bell Cranel. The truth was that something had changed. After Freya Familia stormed the Dungeon and attacked the monster creatures down below, a dark spot had tarnished Bell's pure soul. Since the target of her affection was no longer the perfect object of her desire he once was, Freya called off the attack. The Goddess had been confused. She did not understand what had changed in the boy. So, she let him leave. Her hope had been that time away would return his soul to its perfect blinding state.

During his year away, she considered the reasons why it had changed. Eventually, she settled on the thought that he must have been feeling guilty. Bell Cranel must have been feeling horribly guilty over what happened with those Xenos creatures. Such a thing made no sense to Freya, but if that was what her beloved cared about, then she would help relieve him of his guilt. Which was why she was proceeding with her current operations. If they succeeded, Bell would no longer feel guilty. Then, he would return to his state of purity, and Freya could snatch him up.

Also, she had noticed the effect of her charm ability. Before, he had resisted, but only a couple days ago, Bell Cranel had faltered. It had worked on the boy, which meant that his love for the Sword Princess had not returned as well. (The Goddess did not make the connection between Bell's soul and his love.) But Freya did realize she had to claim Bell Cranel before such feelings returned to him. Hence, her current operations. It would be even better if those feelings would turn towards her…

For now, though, Hestia and Loki could play their little games. And Bell could train with Ais Wallenstein all he wanted. Freya knew the truth; she knew of the stain on Bell Cranel's heart. Because of that, he would be her's soon enough.

Back in the arena, the double's melee had just finished. Among those advancing was a collection of Freya flunkies, Loki Familia, and strangely enough, a double's team of Dormul and Luvis from Magni and Modi Familia. There were also a lot less adventurers competing.

When Otohime commented on this, Ryuu replied, "There are simply fewer level threes. Even if Orario has most of the world's most powerful adventurers, it is not like there are going to be thousands of second-and first-class adventurers lying around."

Otohime nodded, but then Tione chimed, "Speaking of which, how did you get so strong?"

Her question was aimed at the ex-Princess. Otohime had the space of mind to look for permission from her Goddess before telling hers, and by extension Urashima's, story.

"Well, in my homeland, it is common that those of us who are members of the royal family are put through vigorous training," began Otohime, "the closer one is to the top of the succession, the more intense the training," she gestured to herself. "I was the third Princess, in which I was third overall. My family put me through the harshest of conditions from a young age," the Princess looked to the arena and spotted her beloved Ura walking in, "The same can be said for the clans who guard us. They are not permitted to become stronger than us, but they must be capable at the very least."

"Ok, but how?" continued Tione, "Did you have to fight people?"

Otohime shook her head, "Near my ancestral homeland is a nesting ground for dragons. As we reach certain points in our growth, we are sent out. We either win or die."

"Do they do the same for the bodyguards?" asked Tiona.

Otohime shook her head again, "They are forced to fight each other. They raise their statuses and then have competitions. Thankfully, to get to level two, death is not required."

Tiona asked the obvious question, "What about level three? Did Ura have to?"

Otohime smiled, though it was strained and deeply melancholic, "No, Ura did not kill anybody. Others have too, but Ura was forced upon a different path."

"Welcome, citizens of Orario, to the singles melee for the level threes! I am your master of ceremonies, Ibri Achaa!" rang out the voice of the chief commentator, "With me, as always, is the master of Martial Arts himself, Lord Takemikazuchi, and Orario's greatest mischief-maker, Lord Hermes!"

After the two Gods introduced themselves, Ibri spoke up again, "This promises to be an interesting fight, folks! Today we are about to witness one of the newest members of the Hestia Familia!"

Whoops and hollers came from the crowd. Rumours abounded of the newest Hestia Familia members, but no one had been able to pin anything down about them. The only one that people knew anything about was Otohime, and that was that she was a former Princess and wielded a Bisento. Urashima was especially secretive, a deep pool of rumours surrounding him.

"Lord Takemikazuchi, your Familia is close with Hestia's. Is there anything you can tell us about this fighter named Urashima Taro?"

Takemikazuchi chuckled, "I know little more than anyone else. The only thing I do know is that he was raised as a bodyguard, so I expect a more defensive fighting style with acute sensory mastery. Definitely not a magic type."

Otohime snorted, "That's almost accurate."

The last of the fighters took up position and the voice of the elephant mask was heard.

"I am Ganesha!"

With that proclamation, the combatants sprung into action. Urashima was off like a shot, his blades carving a path through the throng of adventurers. As he moved, he began chanting.

"Spirits of the wind bless me and make me fleet of foot, Kani Nashi," finished Urashima. His body glowed a jade green.

"It seems as if Urashima Taro has activated some sort of enchantment magic. Maybe it does something to his agility stat?" said Ibri.

Otohime's face scrunched, "Not just his agility, it gives a minor boost to his dexterity," the Princess crossed her arms and pouted, "These people need to start realizing how amazing my Ura is."

"Hey, I've meant to ask, what's up with you two?" asked Tiona.

Otohime tilted her head, "What do you mean?"

"Are you two involved?" finished Tione.

Otohime turned a very dark shade of red, "Um, sort of? It is a very complicated situation…" she turned away, "I ask that you do not press."

At that awkward exchange, they settled in to watch the rest of the fight. Urashima was some kind of demon. His knives whistled with each slash, and his body was constantly moving; it looked like there were after images being left in his wake. At one point, he leapt into the air and began running across the heads of his enemies.

Urashima was also armed with his personal shuriken that he threw with pinpoint precision. He was a storm of steel, taking out opponents with every movement. As he picked up the pace, his attacks grew wilder.

"Why does he look so angry?" asked Ais, who had never seen Urashima fight properly.

Tione frowned, "He never told us…"

Otohime's grip on the metal railing tightened. Mikoto laid a hand on her shoulder, trying to give a gentle squeeze. The only problem was that she forgot her new strength, again. Otohime eeped in pain, and Mikoto set to apologizing.

Back in the arena, the fight was just wrapping up. Unfortunately, a gang of adventurers working for Freya Familia had decided to gang up on the fighter from Hestia Familia. Urashima was ready for them, though. The bodyguard had more than one spell.

"Shroud me in darkness, and remove the sight of my enemies, Emdan!"

A burst of smoke erupted, and the adventurers about to attack Urashima halted their advance. As the smoke washed over them, they disappeared from the sight of everyone in the arena.

"Ura's second spell, a magical smoke bomb. He can see just fine, but not his enemies," explained Otohime. She grimaced as she heard the adventurers in the smoke start screaming. Then it all went quiet. As the magical smoke dissipated, the arena gasped. All of Urashima's enemies were passed out on the floor. The scene reminded Otohime of when she used to watch Ura train.

She had taken to following her new bodyguard around everywhere. As Third Princess, she did not have many friends, and all her siblings were too jealous or paranoid about playing with her. All that left was her new bodyguard.

Strictly speaking, Urashima Taro was not allowed to play with Otohime Nakamura. Although the Taro Clan name carried weight, they were not nobility. The only reason that the young Princess was allowed to hang around her bodyguard during training was that no one could say no. The only person who could was her father, the emperor, and he didn't give two shits.

So, she watched Urashima fight. Even at a young age, everyone called him a prodigy. The best martial artist they had seen in generations. And even the untrained Otohime could see that. He moved with a certain fluidity and was already able to challenge opponents twice his size. The Taro Clan weren't the only bodyguard family in the Nakamura Empire, so Urashima always had a wealth of opponents looking to get a leg up on their rivals. He didn't have many friends, though. It was the only thing he and Otohime had in common. Apparently, the only person lonelier than the two of them was the little Renard Heiress to the Sanjouno Family. Otohime had never met her, though, and probably never would.

Eventually, Urashima beat the last combatant. His opponent's friends came to help them off the ground. Once upon a time, Urashima would've had to pick himself off the floor. Not anymore, though.

"Here, Ura! I brought you some water!" declared the tiny Princess.

At first, Urashima had politely refused Otohime's help, but then she ordered that he allow her to help. Such was their relationship in the beginning. Eventually, Urashima gave in to her constant demands and just let her help. Soon after, he started to respond to inane questioning. Then, a tentative friendship began. This development left Otohime unbelievably pleased. Urashima's father was not. The young boy was berated continuously and ostracised from his family. He was told incessantly that his behaviour was improper. Knowing this made Otohime feel guilty, but she couldn't help it. She was a little girl, and she had finally made a friend. She was too needy to let him go.

After the smoke dissipated, Ganesha rang his great gong. Urashima had qualified for the finals, as had Elfy of Loki Familia and Folsetti of Baldr Familia. As the crowds began to disperse and Otohime left to congratulate Ura, Ais walked up to Bell.

"Bell, are you going to be here tomorrow to watch the battle?" she asked.

Before Bell could respond, Ryuu shook her head, "My apologies Sword Princess, but Bell and I were going to go shopping for potions and gear for the expedition," Ryuu looked over her Familia, "I do not believe that any of us planned on watching tomorrow, as we have no one competing…"

Elwin coughed, "I think Otohime and Urashima plan on coming. At least, Ura said something about studying his enemy," the half-elf shrugged, "Honestly, who knows what goes through his head. Otohime agreed to come along, saying it was a date."

"What about you, Elwin?" asked Lefiya.

"I need to find a good magic shop in the city," he replied.

"Then I'll help you! I know some wonderful elven shops!" cried out Lefiya.

Elwin blushed, "Then, I guess it's a date."

The coward left before Lefiya could respond. Not that she would be able to, she almost passed out from his response. She was quick to stumble out, though, as everyone stared at her, amused.

Meanwhile, Tiona was badgering Welf, "Hey, Mister Smith! Can I swing by tomorrow and talk about magic, Urga?"

Welf nodded, trying to make an escape and get away from the high-energy amazon. He couldn't, though, as Tiona followed him, asking rapid-fire questions. Tione went after her sister.

"Itty Bitty! Me and Finn are stopping by tomorrow too! We have things to talk about!"

Hestia sighed, "Yeah, alright. Me and Little Miss Supporter will meet you after breakfast, ok?"

The Goddesses left bickering, the prums following. Mikoto and Haruhime went to, hoping to get home and take a long bath. That just left Bell, Ais, and Ryuu.

"So, you'll be with Ryuu all day?" asked Ais. She tilted her head, "Is that a date?"

Neither Ryuu nor Bell was able to answer that question. They had both agreed to spend the day together, as they were both close friends and their Familia's leaders. However, they were both terribly innocent and had never thought of it as a date. As Bell prepared to deny it, he felt an intense murderous aura coming from two directions. Ais wanted him to say no, but for some reason, Ryuu wanted him to say yes? As Ais and Ryuu stared, Bell remembered the wise words of his grandfather.

'Bell, if you ever get into trouble with multiple women, leave. Don't talk; just go. It won't fix anything, but it is better than anything you can say. Retreat, Bell! Live to fight another day!'

So, the Rabbit Foot took off, using his Escape ability. As a level five with his enhanced base stats, he could outpace even Ryuu. And Ais was too confused by her own emotions to give chase. Instead, she started staring at Ryuu, who felt a cold shiver down her spine. The elven warrior made a quick withdrawal, and the Sword Princess sulked her way back home, alone.

The sun went down and rose on another beautiful day. Those who had agreed to pair off together did so. Welf locked himself in the forge, working on weapon maintenance for the big expedition. At least, that was the plan. Tiona had arrived bright and early to start discussing ideas for her Urga. She was followed by her sister, Finn, and Loki.

When they asked why Tione was there, the amazon replied, "I refuse to let the Captain go and talk with the wonderful prum girl! She is much too threatening as a rival!"

So, the five of them sat down to iron out the details of the coming expedition. There was much talk about how long it would take and what equipment and supplies Hestia Familia would need to provide to Ais and Lefiya. Otohime and Urashima passed them on their way out. They left at the same time as Ryuu and Bell.

Eventually, the elf and the boy found their way to Orario's clothing shops. They were looking for Undine cloth, as well as light fabric fit for intense heat. Since floors twenty-eight to thirty-three were burning deserts, even the Dungeon's artificial light would destroy their skin. Usually, the Blue Pharmacy would provide all the items they needed, but they had to look elsewhere for these specialty items. As they searched for specialty cloth, they stopped at a clothing store.

Ryuu said she needed to replace much of her old clothes. She explained that she had worn through much of it on the road. This was a half-truth. In reality, Ryuu was looking to capture Bell's attention. She had taken Hestia's advice to heart. The elven warrior was ready to fight for Bell's love.

She was trying a technique Alise had told her about once upon a time. Her former Captain had explained that boys loved to watch girls change outfits. They found it erotic, apparently.

So, Ryuu tried on several outfits. She wore sundresses, skirts with button-down shirts, and tight pants with tank tops.

Ryuu took a certain amount of satisfaction in watching Bell's reactions. He seemed quite enthralled and showered her in compliments. Ryuu knew she was happy because she felt her ears burning. In fact, they were both turning a dark shade of red by the end of it. Eventually, the two of them had to leave, though. The next thing they did was stop for lunch. Ryuu was too unversed in the ways of love to know if today counted as a date, but she thought it did.

They settled at an elven specialty café.

"So, Bell, how are things going with the Sword Princess?" asked Ryuu, scoping out the competition.

Bell looked at his plate, "Good, I think? We are making progress, but it is still hard to forget…"

Ryuu nodded, "I understand," she reached to grab his hand, "Never be afraid not to forgive. Forgiveness is something that must be earned. Not just for her, but for yourself too."

"What do you mean?" Bell couldn't look her in the eye.

"I know you, Bell, I can guess what you're feeling," Ryuu smiled, "and even if you don't think you deserve it, I still believe that you're a human worth respecting."

There was a moment when the streets quietened, and the two adventurers could lean on each other. Ryuu felt her heartbeat speed up, and her lips tingled. Again, a memory was trying to scratch its way to the surface. A heartbeat later, though, and it passed.

They finished lunch and started walking, basking in the quiet comfort that a companion provided. Ryuu felt herself at ease, any tension in her body disappearing.

At the same time, Elwin was waiting for Lefiya at a special magic shop. When she got there, she wasn't alone. Riveria had joined her. Apparently, the high elf wanted to help out and offer advice. So, the three of them wandered through Orario. When Riveria made a suggestion about getting a new staff with larger crystals on the end, Elwin shook his head.

"No can do. My staff is a weapon, just like any sword. I can't afford no magic baubles," said Elwin, who refused to make eye contact, "I need to be ready to jump to the front lines."

"What do you mean your staff is a weapon?" asked Riveria. Lefiya had gone to a different part of the shop and left the two of them alone.

"My magic isn't a cannon-like yours or Lefiya's. If you guys are cannons, then I'm a multi-tool. Sometimes, I'm a healer, sometimes a mage, and sometimes I'm on the front lines."

Riveria nodded, not want to push the subject. In all honesty, she was happy with the conversation she was getting. It seemed like the half-elf was finally warming up to her.

Then, a salesman walked up to them.

"Greetings, fine elves! May I interest you two in a magical helmet?" he asked.

They shook their heads, but he was not to be deterred, "Come now! If you do not mind me saying, that hat of yours looks as if it could use an upgrade!"

Elwin refused, but the shopman wasn't going to be stopped. He reached forward, trying to rip the hat off. Elwin continued to step away, but the shopkeep persisted. He chased Elwin around the store. Eventually, the half-elf snapped.

"No, thank you!" screamed Elwin. The rest of the shop people were staring now, and Riveria was giving him the stink eye.

She led him away from the crowd, back outside. She faced him, her arms crossed.

"While I understand that that man might have been pushy, you need to learn to restrain yourself," said the high elf, "You might think me presumptuous, but our Familias are allies. What you do reflects back onto me and mine. I cannot let you act in such a way."

Elwin narrowed his eyes and shook off her arm, "Stop talking like you're my big sister or something."

"I am just trying to help," replied Riveria.

"Well, stop."

His words might as well have been spat. The emotion behind them was so intense that Riveria had no clue how to respond. She stood in silence and watched Elwin walk away. He didn't care what she thought, and if he stayed any longer, he was liable to do something stupid. Poor Lefiya was left unbelievably hurt and confused. In her mind, she had done something wrong, so Elwin abandoned her. She finished shopping with Riveria, her heart close to shattering.

All the while, the Princess and her bodyguard were in the stands watching the fighting. The tournament was at the semi-finals by this point. No Baldr Familia though, their only level three was their Captain. However, that hadn't stopped Freya Familia from finding some adventurers to rope into their scheme. In the semi-finals, it was them versus Loki Familia, and Loki was losing. Otohime was only half-watching, though. Her main activity was glaring at other adventurers. Apparently, Urashima was already gaining a fan club.

"Princess, please stop intimidating the other adventurers."

"If those hussies think they can make eyes at my Ura, then they need to learn a lesson."

Ura smiled, "While I appreciate the sentiment, I do not believe you have much to worry about."

"Maybe not, but I still like to make sure that the rest understand," replied Otohime, placing a hand on Ura's thigh.

The two kept watching the fights, even past dinner.

Back at the Hearth Mansion, the discussion was mostly finished. The details had been finalized, and Finn was content. As Lily invited Tione and Finn for tea, the two Goddesses were left to talk.

"What do you want, Loki?" asked Hestia. She had caught the mischief Goddess staring at her all day.

"The boy, where'd he come from?"

Hestia shrugged, "Some mountain village, apparently. Never knew his parents and grew up with his grandfather."

"Did he ever say the name of his grandfather?"

Hestia shook her head, "Just that his Grandfather was the one who told him all the stories he knows."

Loki scowled, "I've got a sneaking suspicion about your kid Hestia. It might be worth it to start asking about who he really is."

Hestia sat there and thought. She knew who she had to ask, but she hated the idea of owing him anything. However, she had her own question to ask.

"Why are you helping us so much?"

Loki scowled, "Freya should know better."

Hestia tilted her head.

"That witch was there when Evilus held the city hostage. She saw what those villains did," Loki's hands trembled, "What they cost us. To then turn around and do the same? For a boy? That ain't right," the Goddess's famous evil grin appeared, "She should know better, and I'm going to remind her."

After that, Loki left and hurried after Finn.

Back with Ryuu and Bell, the two were finishing up shopping when Bell looked over his shoulder.

"We're being followed," he said.

Ryuu didn't ask; she just placed her hand on her blade. The two of them kept walking, moving through the crowd. Apparently, though, their follower wasn't easily deterred. Eventually, Ryuu signalled Bell to keep walking. She peeled away from him and went into an alleyway. She assumed someone was out for revenge, a remnant of Evils. Whoever had been following them was only interested in Bell, though. After walking into a dead-end alley, Bell turned around. Ryuu took up a position at the opening, having double-backed around their assailant. This way, they were able to catch Bell's stalker.

Stand in the mouth of the alley, looking much like a child caught with their arm in the cookie jar, was Ais Wallenstein.

The Sword Princess studied the floor, her eyes hidden behind her hair.

"Umm, Ais, why were you following me?" asked Bell.

He saw her mouth move but didn't pick up the answer.

"Please, Sword Princess, you'll have to speak up," said Ryuu.

"Tione said I should do it," replied Ais.

"Why is that?" asked the elf.

"She said it was a bad idea to leave Bell alone with another woman."

Ryuu narrowed her eyes, "Are you suggesting that I would do something to hurt Bell?"

Ais turned to face the elf and shook her head, "No, but Tione told me something indecent might happen."

Ryuu's cheeks warmed, "Indecent! I would never! Right, Bell?"

It was only then that they had noticed Bell was no longer with them. The boy was naïve in many ways, but even he knew there was only one thing to do when he heard Ais's reasoning.

Bell heard Ais and Ryuu start running after him, so he ducked into Daedalus Street. The maze of streets, where he had spent much time, made it easy to lose the two pursuing females. Eventually, his running took him to a familiar building. In the weeks of his return, Bell had failed to visit Maria's Orphanage. He was afraid of who he might run into, but he also felt guilty for not going to see the children.

Unfortunately, just as he feared, she was there playing with children. She looked like Syr, so Bell thought it might have been Helun. When he saw her face, though, he knew it was Freya. Only she could smile like that. As they clambered for her attention, one of them spotted him. Then the rest started to scream and point.

"Big Bro!" cried out the children. Bell was swarmed then as they all ran to tackle him.

"See, I told you he was back!" said one child. The rest bombarded him with questions until Maria, the orphanage woman, corralled the children inside. That left Bell alone with her.

"I'm not going to force you to stay," said Syr/Freya, reading his mind.

Choosing to ignore that, Bell asked, "Do they not know?"

Syr shook her head, "Most of the common people still don't know what really happened to this version of me," Syr sighed, a sad smile on her face, "but you can tell them if you wish."

"No, I don't want to hurt them like that," he said.

It was strange. Here was the Goddess who had been responsible for killing his friends, trying to have a pleasant conversation with. Bell was barely able to suppress his rage. His hands wanted to wrap themselves around her throat. The only problem was, she looked like Syr. The same Syr who had made him lunches and was always waiting for him at the end of the day. Syr, who had always stuck by his side.

"Why?"

Syr sighed, and the tired aura of the Goddess poked through, "I don't have a reason that you'll like Bell," she shrugged, "I will say though, there is a lot that I regret."

With those quiet words, the disguised Goddess went inside to play with the children. Bell almost left, but he felt a large presence sneak upon him. He turned to find the great Boaz Ottar looming over him. The King of Orario made a point of removing his sword from his back and laid it on the ground. The gesture was utterly symbolic, of course. Even bare-handed, Ottar could rip Bell's head from his shoulders.

"Yes, Mister Ottar?" asked Bell, sweating.

"What does your Goddess mean to you, Bell Cranel?"

Ottar's voice was a deep rumble.

Bell was so unprepared that his answer was a mess, even to himself, "Well… she's everything! She saved me and gave me a chance when no one else would!" Bell looked to the ground, "I would do anything for her…"

Ottar grunted.

"Then we are much the same. My queen rescued me and gave me the chance to become strong."

Bell spoke before thinking, "Except in my Familia, we don't let our Goddess do whatever she wants."

Apparently, even Orario's King could be caught off guard. There was a minute of quiet before the Boaz nodded.

"There might be some truth to that."

With that, the King walked off, and the Rabbit Foot ran home.

Chapter Text

The day that Urashima's life was ruined did not start horribly. Actually, it was quite pleasant. He was on duty watching over the Princess as she hiked through the mountains. When she was little, she was easily distracted. Now that she was twelve, though, she was faced with responsibilities and obligations. She was constantly forced into high-pressure situations. So, these days where she was allowed to play without worry were good. Those days made Urashima happy.

Secretly, he was glad that they had left their homeland. There was no responsibility with Hestia Familia, and his Princess was allowed to live happily. He had seen her smile more in their time with Hestia Familia than the ten years of their…relationship…within the Nakamura Empire. And her joy was contagious.

Urashima was happier too. These strangers learned of his past, and they did not care. This itty-bitty Goddess seemed like a klutz and an airhead, which she was, but she was also kind and empathetic. When she saw his condition, she didn't pity him or turn away in disgust.

All Hestia said was, "Well, we'll have to work together to make sure that you can keep doing what you believe!"

The rest of them were the same. Lily only commented that it would add more to their dimensions of dungeon exploring. These fantastic fools had accepted him whole-heartedly.

"If one such as I is given a place to be saved, then there will always be a place for you, Master Urashima," said Haruhime.

Welf had snorted and said, "This'll be the best challenge of my smithing career. Bring it on!"

So, Urashima had grown to love this little Familia, almost as much as he loved his Princess. These people were counting on him today, and he would not let them down. No matter what his disability did to stand in his way.

He woke up that morning to the sound of his door creaking open. Otohime walked in with a pot of tea and her favourite scarf on a tray.

Urashima was quick to sit up and try to throw on a shirt, "Princess! Please give me some notice next time!"

Otohime rolled her eyes, "Ura, I've seen you in less," the Princess kneeled down, "Honestly, you're so strange about these things," she smirked, "Besides, I like admiring that chest of yours."

Urashima felt his face heat up, but then he frowned, "It is not my chest I want to hide."

Otohime was not to be deterred, though. She took those cold hideous hands that he hated and brought them up to cup her cheeks.

"I love them, though. They always make me feel so warm!" declared the Princess, wearing the smile that Ura would die for.

Try as he might bring his hands back, Urashima was still a level behind. The Princess held him there and forced him to look her in the eye. Eventually, she let go, but Ura only had a second to breathe. Soon enough, she threw herself at him, wrapping him in her arms.

Slowly, she drew back, touching her forehead to his, "You can hate these arms of yours all you want because I'll just love them so much it won't even matter."

She stood then, "Now come on! We have to get you ready to kick some ass!"

Otohime helped him prepare. She secured his weaponry and fitted his armour and shinobi clothe. Finally, she tied her scarf like a sash across his chest.

"You'll always carry a part of me, Urashima Taro," explained Otohime. She was in rare form today, displaying all this affection with none of her usual teasing. It was then that Urashima realized that she was anxious. His desire to win grew even more then, for himself and for Otohime.

When they came downstairs, his Familia was sitting around the table, listening to Bell.

"Then he said, 'There might be some truth to that,' and walked off," finished Bell.

There were varying levels of shock and fear on everyone's face. At Urashima and Otohime's questioning looks, Welf quietly filled them in on Bell's encounter with Freya.

Before anyone could muster up a response, Ryuu slammed the table with her fist. The ordinarily calm elf was more livid than anyone had seen her.

"How dare she parade around looking like Syr!" declared the elf, "Thinking that she can just apologize! Acting like she can fix things!"

The elf felt a pair of small hands wrap around her trembling fist. Her Goddess smiled sadly.

"I can't even imagine the pain you're feeling right now," replied Hestia, "But we need to keep our heads, ok? If we let this rattle us, we'll be playing into Freya's hands."

Hestia's words didn't just calm Ryuu. Everyone let the Goddess's unshakable faith wash over them.

As everyone regained their composure, Hestia nodded at Urashima, "Better to focus on the challenge ahead," she grinned, like a predator, "that said, I doubt that Ura of all people will face stiff competition."

At Otohime's vigorous nodding, everyone added in their agreement.

"It is true. Besides Sir Bell and Lady Ryuu, Sir Urashima has the finest technique of anyone in this Familia," said Mikoto.

Before the others could be so vocal, though, there was a resounding knock. It echoed through Hearth Manor. As Haruhime hurried off to receive their surprise guest, everyone sat in silence. When they heard her yip in surprise, they rushed off to find out who it was. They were greeted with the sight of Loki Familia's vice-captain, Riveria Ljos Alf.

The high elf nodded to Hestia, "My apologies for my unplanned arrival, but I believe that I need to speak to one of your Familia.

"Now wait just a sec-" began Elwin before Hestia nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds about right. You two can talk here and then meet us at the tournament, ok?" replied the tiny Goddess.

She then rushed out the rest of her Familia, leaving the half-elf alone with the high elf. Later, Elwin was going to throttle Hestia. For now, though, he led Riveria to their lounge area and offered her some tea.

She refused and said, "Please, take a seat."

So, he sat down and fidgeted awkwardly with his cap.

Riveria sighed, "I'm not here to bite your head off; I just want to ask you some questions."

"Like what?"

"Why do you seem to hate me?"

Elwin looked to the ground, "I don't hate you; it's more complicated than that."

"But you don't like me?"

Elwin exhaled, "I don't really know you…"

"Why do you want to know me?"

Elwin looked up in shock and exclaimed, "Because, you're my-"

The half-elf caught himself then and bit the inside of his cheek. He was really starting to lose it.

Riveria raised an eyebrow, "If we have some sort of relationship that I don't know about, I'd like to know, please," the high elf leaned forward, "I want to help you."

Elwin struggled then. But then he remembered why he came to this city, why he begged Lady Hecate to let him join Hestia Familia. The final piece was when he saw Riveria's face. Her mask of calm had broken, revealing a deep sincerity and sorrow. The desire to alleviate her despair was the final push. Slowly, ever so slowly, Elwin took off his raggedy old cap. And out tumbled locks of fine jade green hair. As he concentrated on the floor, he realized it was getting wet. That's strange; it's not like there was a leak in the roof?

The next thing Elwin felt was Riveria dabbing his cheeks with a handkerchief. The high elf seemed terribly confused but also determined.

Elwin brought his hands to grab her wrist and said, "My full name is Elwin Ruffrot Ljos Alf, and I'm your little brother."

The both of them started crying then, all their emotions overflowing.

To allow them some time to collect themselves, return to the arena where the others have already split from Urashima Taro. A little elf girl was vibrating from worry as her senior tried to calm her down.

"Lefiya, please try and relax. I am sure that Lady Riveria would not do anything to harm Elwin," said Ryuu, sitting next to Lefiya at the Loki box.

"Yes, but are you sure Elwin wouldn't do anything to irritate her?" replied Lefiya.

At Ryuu's silence, Lefiya's anxiety only grew worse. Why did she seem to fall for such irritating people?

"There's nothing to worry about, little elf girl; all this is, is a conversation that's needed to happen for a while," said Hestia, who was sitting behind the two elves. She leaned back and laced her hands behind her head.

Down in the arena, the first battles of the top sixteen were happening. The fifth battle came around, and it was now Urashima's turn.

"Go get 'em, Ura!" shouted Otohime.

Obviously, the bodyguard heard her as he looked to where she was standing. He nodded up to the stands.

"Well, it seems like the rumours were true. We might just have a new power couple here in Orario folks," commented Ibri, "We'll have to see how this relationship stands up in the next fight, though."

Hermes nodded, "Too true. Urashima Taro's opponent is indeed a tricky one. Peito is a unique opponent who has access to charm magic. This means that if Urashima allows her to get her spell off, he runs an extremely high risk of falling for her womanly wiles."

Up in the stands, Hestia Familia fell into hysterics, and Loki Familia watched them with dumbfounded looks. This was going to be a fun match.

Urashima walked out and waited for his opponent. Eventually, Peito sauntered out, hips swaying. Objectively, she was beautiful. Unlike elves, whose beauty came from grace, Peito appeared to have her beauty rooted in her sexuality. Apparently, she used to be a member of Ishtar Familia but was forced to convert.

"My oh my, it seems I have to fight a big strong man," began Peito.

Urashima returned with silence. Peito smirked, thinking that he would be begging on his knees in only a moment.

When Ganesha rang the gong, Urashima didn't make the first move.

'What trying to prove something to that girl of yours?' thought Peito, 'Ha! Like that's going to do anything.'

"Worship me, and receive my love," began Peito, "join me, and bend your will to mine. Become as one, and obey my voice, lover: Venit Amor."

A cloud of pink enveloped Urashima. His eyes appeared to glaze over. Peito grin, "Good boy, now step forward."

Urashima walked towards Peito.

In the stands, people were snickering. The fool had done nothing to try and stop her; now they could watch him beg like a dog. Who did he think he was, thinking that he could beat charm magic? This arrogant boy was about to be shown the error of his ways.

In the Loki Familia box, Loki Familia watched as Otohime turned away from this fight and covered her eyes.

"Now, you're going to surrender like a good boy, and then you're going to fall to your knees and declare your undying love for me, ok?" continued Peito.

Urashima did not respond. He just kept walking forward.

When he finally got close enough to Peito, he raised his hand as if to forfeit the match. After he brought it up, though, it came chopping down at light speed. He followed that up with a series of quick blows to Peito's torse and face that left her unconscious on the ground. Urashima walked off afterwards.

In the stunned silence that followed, uproarious laughter broke out. All of Hestia Familia, and especially Otohime, couldn't keep themselves contained.

"Ummm, does anyone know what happened?" asked Ibri.

"My best guess? Urashima Taro has some sort of charm immunity," replied Takemikazuchi.

"Hey, Oto! Is that true?" asked Tiona.

Otohime caught her breath and nodded. Her grin remained, though it had switched from amusement to contentment. She brought both her hands up to her chest.

"Urashima has a skill called 'Devoted Heart,'" replied Otohime, "I have it too. As long as we care about each other, then charm-based magic doesn't work."

The young Princess, while smiling, had turned red all the way up to the tips of her ears.

Her eyes stared at the spot where Urashima had gone back inside, "It doesn't do anything for hypnosis or illusions or things like that…but if anyone tried to charm either of us," Otohime shrugged, "Wouldn't work."

"How much do you have to care?" asked Tione, eager to start teasing.

"Well… it's…that is to say…" stammered Otohime. Her Familia rolled their eyes but then joined in. Soon the poor Princess was forced to endure extreme bouts of harassment from all sides.

Back in the Hearth Manor, both elves had calmed down enough to resume talking. Riveria had shifted her position so that she was sitting next to Elwin, clasping his hands.

"Would it be ok if I asked how or what?"

Based on Elwin's bright hair, and the rest of his features, Riveria concluded that he was telling the truth. There was no way he could lie about something like this, and Riveria wanted to believe that he wasn't the sort to do so.

"After you left the Royal Forest, Larfal, that is…our father, decided that he wanted to see the outside world too," began Elwin, "He travelled all around, and eventually met my mother…and he Ummm."

Riveria blushed, "Yes, I believe I can figure that part out myself."

Elwin nodded, "Right, so father does the deed, and then he leaves. Eventually, he returns home and decides that the outside world is pretty shit after all. Except, when he was with mother…something stuck. She wrote to him, and he replied…"

Elwin had trailed off, and Riveria adopted a sad smile, "He did not react well?"

Elwin shook his head, "No, he demanded that my mother…take care of me. Couldn't stand the thought of a bastard, half-high elf running around. Elven pride and all that, right? But instead of listening, mom ran away to Hecate Familia. They took her in and gave her protection. Larfal might be king of the elves, but with no falna, there was nothing he could do. Eventually, he struck a deal with me and my mom-"

"Wait, you've met him?" asked Riveria.

"Yeah, he met with me and said that I could live as long as I renounced my titles," Elwin snorted, "Worst meeting ever, but I always figured he'd be a piece of shit."

Riveria sighed, irritated at her father's actions. She was also outraged that he had hidden her little brother from her.

Elwin took Riveria's face to mean something completely different, though. He grew panicked, "Listen! You don't have to…be nice to me or anything. Not like we grew up together, right? I just…wanted to meet you is all…you can forget about me, be disgusted by me, it don't matter to me," Elwin looked at the floor, "The Gods know that most of the rest of my race can't stand me."

Before he could say any more disparaging comments, he felt himself embraced.

"I would never feel disgusted by you," Riveria shifted her position so that she could touch her forehead to his, "I can't wait to learn more about you…little brother."

Elwin felt himself turn red then, "If you're sure about that…can I call you…big sister?"

Riveria laughed as she drew back and ruffled Elwin's hair, "Of course you can," she looked him in the eye, "But no more hiding it. No more hat theatrics. No brother of mine is going to be ashamed of who they are," the high elf tried to smirk, "Anyone who has a problem will have to deal with me from now on."

"Yeah, ok, that's a deal," replied Elwin, a great big grin spilling over his face.

Riveria stood, "We should probably get going, though. I'm sure the others are worried about us, especially Lefiya."

Elwin started to blush, "Oh Gods… she's going to be pissed at me," then he frowned, "or she's going to be disgusted…"

Riveria snorted, the gesture odd on her graceful features, "If it were any other elf, maybe, but Lefiya doesn't care about all that. She'll be shocked for a little while, and she'll probably act a little more formal afterwards. You just have to give her time."

At Elwin's nod, the two siblings left then and made their way down the street. As they walked, Riveria asked countless questions. She said that she had a lot of catching up to do, but Elwin also thought it was to distract him. Now that his hair was out, and he was walking side by side with Riveria, the resemblance was uncanny. Already, people were whispering and pointing. There would be no mistaking who he was anymore, but he didn't really care. To him, the hard part was over.

By the time the two of them entered the colosseum, the quarterfinals had started. They entered the executive box, and all Loki Familia stared. Loki had a knowing grin on her face, which earned her a quick thump over the head from Riveria. The high elf turned to address her Familia.

"He is my little brother. If you have any questions, you ask me first, understood?"

After everyone nodded, and Bete was given a stiff glare, Riveria moved to sit next to her brother. Lefiya took up the spot on the other side, occasionally glancing over at Elwin. Her hands fidgeted in her lap.

The half-elf sighed, "I guess I owe you an explanation, huh?"

"That would be much appreciated," replied Lefiya, who smiled, "How about over dinner?"

No time like the present after all.

Elwin blushed but nodded.

Back in the arena, Urashima's quarterfinal match was about to begin. He was up against a magic swordsman, known for their fire magic.

His opponent drew two duelling swords, giving them some expert swings. Urashima smiled, for it seemed like he was facing a worthy opponent.

At the sound of Ganesha's gong, they both moved at the same time. Urashima tried to get close so that his knives would be more effective. His opponent also came in close, but it seemed like he was doing it to activate his fire magic. His opponent finished a short incantation that seemed to ignite his blades. The goal was obviously to use the heat to throw off Urashima.

Urashima grinned, caught up in the heat of battle. He was used to facing Freya goons, but now he faced an honourable opponent. He faced a true warrior.

What he didn't realize was that his sleeves were burning off. Due to Urashima's up-close fighting style, his arms were often the closest to the source of his opponent's flames. Every slash singed his dark fabric. The battle raged on for three minutes, all of it intense, physical combat.

At the end of the third minute, though, Urashima's opponent's eyes bugged out. Then they were leaping backwards and away. Urashima, in his confusion, brought his arms into a defensive position and saw that what was underneath was exposed.

From the shoulders down, his arms were made out of metal.

That fateful day, he had followed the Princess to watch over her while she played. They were close to the foot of the mountains leading to the Ancestral Home of the Dragons. Otohime was off, living one of her adventures in her imagination. By random chance, a great shadow fell over them. A large dragon had come home to nest, and the wind generated by its mighty wings dislodged a sizable boulder.

"Princess Otohime!" screamed Urashima, who was already diving. He pushed the Princess out of the way, but then everything was dark.

When he came to, he found himself at home. He tried to sit up, but it was a struggle. Sitting next to him was his mother, preparing a washcloth. When she saw her son struggling, she rushed to help him sit up.

The first thing Urashima asked was, "Is Princess Otohime ok?"

His mother nodded but didn't say anything else. She looked like she was holding back tears. Urashima tried to wipe them away, but his arms didn't respond. He looked down to find the remains of a stump shifting under bandages. The shock almost killed him.

In the present, the arena fell silent. The horror settled in; whispers began to rise from the stands. Everywhere Urashima looked, people were pointing. Some were disgusted; others seemed to pity him. His opponent, who had approached him as a fellow warrior, was now considering options to withdraw. Who wanted to fight a cripple?

Space started to close in on the young man. An oppressive weight sunk onto his chest. Had it always been this hard to catch his breath? Just as the shadows threatened to consume him, a sound rang out, like the dawn breaking.

"UUURRRRAAAA!"

Urashima looked to find Otohime smiling down at him, her energy as infectious as always. Around her was his little Familia. His breathing settled. When he looked back to his opponent, he motioned for them to come at him. They came but with trepidation. As they hesitated, Urashima slotted his knives into the sides of his metal arms. His bladed appendages now had their hands free, and he could attack as he pleased.

He assaulted his opponent with a storm of fists and slashes. He would rake his arm by, cutting into his opponents' skin, and then grab with his open palm and begin a throw. In this battle, he felt liberated.

Too soon, his opponent lay in a bloody heap, unconscious but breathing. The arena's silence was deafening at what they just saw.

Even the voice of Ibri was more subdued than usual, "Well then, it seems that Urashima Taro is the winner, folks…"

As the announcer trailed off, scattered applause came from the bystanders. There were also a couple boo's thrown down as well.

Urashima just walked out, though. To these people, he was a freak now, so he didn't care.

Up in the box, Loki Familia sat there, stunned into silence. Bete especially looked disgusted at the battle. The wolfman turned to the Princess.

"And you force that weakling to follow you?" the wolf shook his head, "Disgusting. Can't you let him be at peace?"

His words hammered into Otohime, fresh waves of guilt piling in. It was all her fault, all her fault, all her fault…

Then Otohime was tackled by a tiny Goddess. The Princess felt herself crying as Hestia held her close and stroked her hair. Dimly, she was aware of Riveria, Finn, and Gareth all laying into Bete. The wolfman was sent home to deal with his issues.

Off to the side, Riveria looked at Elwin.

"Are they going to be, ok?" asked the elf.

Elwin shrugged, "Hard to tell. Ura'll probably be fine. The only problem he has with the situation are some leftover anger issues," he looked to Otohime, "She might need a break, though, especially if he isn't here to talk to her."

Elwin was shaking, though. He argued with Urashima, but the ninja was a good person. At his core, he wanted to protect people, and Elwin could empathize. Elwin felt himself start to get so angry, rage building at these judgemental idiots when he felt a hand in his. Riveria gave him a reassuring squeeze, and Elwin breathed. People were bad, but his family was good. That was what mattered.

Meanwhile, Otohime was caught in her dark swirling faults. When that boulder fell to her, it happened in slow motion. She saw its shadow grow over her, and she felt herself get moved to the side. Watching over her, putting her safety first, was him. It always had been.

The immediate pain had shocked Urashima into unconsciousness at the time. This meant that Otohime's job was to move the boulder and run home, carrying his limp body on her back. The only thing that kept the Princess going, as his blood matted her clothing, was that she felt his shallow breathing. He was alive, barely.

When she finally got home, her memory got blurry. There was a rush of movement and a lot of yelling. Too many people looked over her. She remembered being so confused at all the doctors examining her.

'Why aren't they looking at Ura?'

When she was finally allowed to visit him, he was asleep. The doctor nearby informed her that the arms had to be removed, or else they'd rot the whole body. The horror of Otohime's actions settled in. Her selfish desire to play had caused this. Her carelessness had cost someone dear his arms. She had crippled Urashima for life.

Back in the present, her tears dried out eventually. Bell was watching off to the side, Ais standing next to him.

"I can't even imagine…how do you start to process that?" asked Bell to no one.

Ais frowned, "You never do. No matter what happens, when it's someone important to you, that guilt hurts forever."

The girl looked to the boy, "I want to say I'm sorry, Bell, always."

Bell nodded, "I know Ais."

Down in the waiting room, Urashima sat by himself. The other fighters were staring at him. He tried not to pay attention to them. Instead, he spent time inspecting his arms for signs of scuffs or tears. While being made of metal made them appear invincible, the truth was that they fell apart easily. They were temperamental pieces of equipment.

Eventually, he had to leave for his semi-final bout. When he walked outside, a hush fell over the arena again. Not even the commentators had anything to say. Ganesha rang the gong, but his opponent didn't seem to want it.

'That's right, stare at the freak, you idiot,' thought Urashima. His opponent was trounced. Urashima did not have any time to waste on these people. He still had to win this tournament.

He left the arena just as quickly, not wanting to give these people more to talk about. The festive air had long left the tournament behind. This fighter reminded the spectators of the grim reality of being an adventurer.

Back in the box, Otohime finished telling the story of what happened. Those who did not know sat there in quiet horror. The story was especially hard on the sweet and innocent Lefiya. After Knossos, she thought that she had gotten over her naivety, but this was a startling reminder that that wasn't true. Elwin moved from his spot beside Riveria to take her hand.

"You know that this isn't your fault, right?" asked Tione.

Otohime shook her head, "If I wasn't such a stupid child!"

She couldn't finish her sentence. The Princess didn't let herself cry again, though. She had to watch Urashima's final fight against Folsetti; she owed him that much.

The two combatants walked into the arena. As they faced each other, Folsetti sneered, "Don't think I'm going to just let you win, you freak! I'm going to kick your ass and then receive the grace of Lady Freya!"

The admittedly handsome brute then brought out his large Warhammer. He patted the great metalhead, flat on one side, spiked on the other, and took up a ready position. Urashima did not respond. Instead, he took out his daggers and inserted them into the open slits of his arms. This was all the preparation he would need. Again, dead silence filled the space. The gong rang, and the battle began.

Urashima tried to rush in, but Folsetti's hammer made great swinging arcs. The extended reach it gave him stopped Urashima in his tracks. The ninja was forced to dodge constantly. The Captain of Baldr Familia laughed.

"Is dodging all you're good for?" Folsetti snorted, "Actually, cancel that! If you were any good at dodging, I'm sure you'd still have your fucking hands!"

Urashima was a calm man. He had heard taunts like this before; it would not break him.

Urashima's lack of response frustrated his opponent. Folsetti fell for Ura's taunting silence then and started to swing wildly. This let Urashima slip in and deliver a series of quick cuts with his steel forearms. The ninja jumped back afterwards, unharmed.

Folsetti looked ready to blow, then he grinned. He had a new plan of attack.

"That Princess of yours, she's a real showstopper, ain't she?"

Urashima's metallic hands curled into fists.

"Hey, you two are pretty close, right? Does that mean that you use those metal hands of yours for…you know?"

"Stop it."

There it was, a crack in the bastard's mask of stoicism. Folsetti's smile grew. Just a little more, then he'd win.

"I get it, man, with a whore that pr-"

Folsetti got slammed onto his back, with Ura screaming as he pounded at him. Folsetti took the blows, though. He had seen Urashima fight; the ninja was based on speed and technique. In a fit of dazed anger like this, his blows lacked their usual decisiveness. Folsetti had strength to spare, though.

The Captain of Baldr Familia was able to grab both of Ura's arms, mid punch. As Ura watched, confused, Folesetti grabbed the other arm. Then the Captain of Baldr Familia stood up, dragging Urashima up with him, and he started pulling. There was the twisting sound of wires snapping and loud pops of blood. There was a horrible wrenching sound that compounded with Urashima's screams.

Metal snapping, flesh-tearing, and howls of pain were the only sounds throughout Orario. Urashima struggled, trying to swing his legs up and forward, but his pain made him delirious. It was impossible for the young boy to aim. Audiences watched in horror as Urashima's metal arms were ripped off. The boy fell to the ground as Folsetti tossed the arms aside and laughed. Ura lay there in a heap, unmoving.

The braggart proclaimed, "I win!"

And in response, a Princess whispered, "Not even close."

Just after the accident happened, Urashima's father came to visit. He disowned his son and called him a failure to the Taro name.

"Without your arms, you have no place here. You will be sent away from this hallowed home, understand?"

What good was a warrior who couldn't swing a sword?

Urashima received no more updates to his status and only the bare minimum of care. His mother had fought so that he could heal a bit more before he was exiled. Unfortunately, his fever was killing him. Then, one morning, everything started to change. The doctors began to sound like they knew what they were doing. Urashima's food was more than just stale bread and water.

It took a week of recovery, but he finally regained enough of his senses to notice that he was being watched. When they thought he was sleeping, he would catch a glimpse of a familiar set of golden eyes. One night, he woke up to find her sitting beside him, crying.

"Of course, he's going to hate me…I ruined him…"

Blinking away sleep, Urashima replied, "I could never hate you, Princess."

He startled her, and Otohime fell on top of him. She cried and apologized for half the night, refusing to let go.

They spent much time talking then and even more time crying. Now that he knew Otohime was there, she assisted where she could in his recovery. When Urashima was well enough, he prepared to leave and find a cave to spend his exile in, but Otohime stopped him.

"I spoke to father and my siblings. I'm going to do some things to support the Second Prince's claim to the throne, and in exchange, you get to stay," explained the Princess, while she led him to his new room near her quarters.

No matter how much he protested, she refused to listen.

"Also," continued Otohime, "Tomorrow, we resume our training."

Urashima scowled, "What training could I possibly do?"

Otohime's face tilted, and her smile blossomed, "You have two legs, don't you? And a head?"

So, Urashima relearned to fight. He spent time from dawn till dusk doing drills. He found opponents willing to spar, and he learned how to beat them without using arms or hands. Then, one year to the day of his accident, he was summoned by the Goddess. He left for the palace the same day. The Imperial Palace was split into three sections. There was the Great Hall, for receptions, the Emperor's Abode, and the Goddess Temple, where Lady Amaterasu resided.

The Sun Goddess was beauty incarnate. Urashima had met her long ago to receive his Falna and only visited sporadically to update his status. He remembered a small ceremony when he became a level two and both of Otohime's ceremonies for her level-ups. Apparently, the Princess was just about to undergo her level four trial in the mountains. Was that what this was about?

"Ahhh, Ura, it is good to see you healthy," said the Goddess, smiling down. Apparently, she had come to visit when he was first recovering.

Urashima bowed, his torso jolting, "I am honoured, my Goddess. What can I do for you?"

Amaterasu giggled, "This is about what I can do for you," she smirked, "I have been informed that you have been training diligently. I suppose it is time for a status update, yes?"

Urashima's mouth parted, "Update? But I have been disowned? I thought I was cast out of the Familia?"

Amaterasu rolled her eyes, "Your father can do as he pleases with his own clan, but you never stopped being my child, Urashima Taro."

Urashima received his update, and just as the Goddess finished her work, his father entered. Face red, the man who had raised him looked ready to kill.

"How dare you abuse the Goddess's kindness, you mongrel!" cried out father.

He came forward as if to attack his son, but Urashima was ready. Apparently, no one expected the amputee to fight back. His father was a level three, but Urashima was not the same man he was before. Also, his father had trained in the way of the Taro Clan. He fought with expert palm strikes and throws. There was a lot of grappling and counterattacks involved in the old ways. Urashima was not that kind of opponent anymore. The battle was not easy, but Urashima's status had just been updating after a year's worth of training. Also, Otohime was watching, so defeat was inexcusable. When he beat his father to the floor, Urashima stood over him.

"You control me no more," said the forgotten son. He defeated his father and gained another level. The next day, he received his superior metal arms. They were not the same, but they would suffice for his role. Apparently, the Third Princess had commissioned them.

Just like that day, and every day since, Urashima kept fighting. This bully from Baldr Familia was no different than his father. So, what if he had no arms? He had gone a whole year without them before. His opponent had an advantage in strength, big deal; Urashima had fought dragons.

Urashima stood up.

"I don't remember conceding."

Folsetti turned around and sighed to cover his frustration, "Really? I have to beat you some more, cripple? You're going to make me look bad!"

As Folsetti readied his hammer, Urashima charged. He weaved past Folsetti's blows, ducking and dodging. When he was close enough, he started kicking. His legs moved him in large circles, his feet flying whenever they made contact with something solid. His blows were thunderous in their power. Each hit rang out concussively. Then, the hammer came around in a great looping swing.

Urashima rose up to kick that too. He brought his leg down and embedded the hammer's spiked head into the dirt. Folsetti tried to pull it loose, but it was stuck. The hammer was rendered useless. Urashima used that hammerhead as his springboard to leap into the air. His leg chopped down on Folsetti's head.

Folsetti finally let go of the haft of his hammer then and made to grab Urashima. As he tried to immobilize the ninja, Urashima brought his head down on his opponent's nose. Folsetti stumbled back, clutching at his broken nose.

"I'm sorry, does that hurt?" replied Urashima, sneering.

The taunting drove Folsetti to rage out. He came after Urashima in a fit of terrible anger, totally out of control. Urashima guided him to the wreckage of the metal arms. Once there, Urashima swept down to the wreckage to grab a knife with his teeth.

He then jumped forward and wrapped his legs around his opponent. He used this spot as a platform from which to stab continuously into Folsetti, dagger clenched between teeth. His blade turned a dark red as it moved in and out of the berserker's flesh. His handiwork left the proud Captain of Baldr Familia a bloody wreck.

Urashima was covered in bruises for his part, and he was pretty sure a couple ribs were broken. Also, there was the apparent state of his stumps. He turned to leave and get healing. As he limped back inside, he heard Ibri announce his victory. Urashima didn't care though, he had never been one to sit on celebration.

A Guild employee guided him to a side room to receive medical attention. He was met there by the Dea Saint, who quickly set to work on his recovery. As that happened, his Familia came inside to join him.

Hestia spoke first, "You know, you were supposed to wait so I could update your status in front of everyone."

Urashima shrugged, "I didn't want those people staring any more than they already were."

"I know," replied Hestia, in her gentlest voice.

"He'll be ok," says Airmid, "But I want him to stop by the clinic for the next couple of days to make sure."

At Lily's skeptical glance, she added, "All fees will be covered by the guild."

Airmid continued, "Also, will you be needing a new set of arms? We have the highest quality prosthetics."

Urashima shook his head, "I have back-up arms in my luggage. I can use those until Welf repairs my main ones," the bodyguard smiled, "they have sentimental value after all."

As the others chatted and congratulated Urashima on his victory and level up, he noticed a certain Princess hiding in the back.

"Otohime, you don't have to hide," said Welf.

The Princess stepped forward, wringing her hands.

"You know, I've been hurt," began Urashima, "I sure could do with a warm embrace right about now…"

Otohime looked him in the eyes. He tried to smile and convey all his feelings for her. Then she smiled and hugged her beloved. She held him close.

"I'll bring your spare set to the clinic tomorrow. I'll be with you all day," she whispered in his ear.

Back when they had both broken free from the Empire and left with Hestia Familia, they had sat down to talk.

"Since we'll be regular Familia members now," started Otohime, "There's something I wanted to tell you…" For once in her life, her bright energy was gone. Instead, she sounded incredibly anxious.

Urashima stopped loading their baggage. He turned to give his full attention to the Princess.

"Ura, I love you so much it scares me. I know you probably hate me because of what I did, but I want you to know that I love you, and I always will," said Otohime, looking at the ground.

Urashima walked up to her and took her hands, "I know, Princess," at her surprised look, he smiled.

"You are not a subtle person Lady Otohime," he brought their foreheads together, "I love you to Princess."

Urashima sighed then, "Which is why we cannot be together…yet," he stepped back, "If I am to be with you, it must be as a partner. Right now, all I see is my beloved Princess."

Otohime nodded, relieved at his answer, "And all I see is my beloved bodyguard."

She cupped his cheek, pressing her lips to his. When she pulled away, she whispered, "Then this is a promise for the future."

In the present, she held him, happy for what their fates held.

With that, two hearts beat as one, and the sixth day came to a close.

Character Profile:

Urashima Taro:

Level Four

Status:

Strength: I 0 Defense: I 0 Dexterity: I 0 Agility: I 0 Magic: I 0

Abnormal Resistance: E

Synthesis: G

Fist Fighter: I

Magic:

Kani Nashi: Enchantment magic that boosts the user's Agility and Dexterity.

Emdan: Creates a smokescreen that affects all but the user.

Skill:

Devoted Heart: As long as a beloved one is kept in mind, the skill bearer cannot be charmed by people or monsters.

Leaper: Leg-based attacks are amplified and strengthened.

Perseverance: Active skill that nullifies pain. An active trigger that consumes mind.

Elwin Ruffrot-Ljos Alf

Level Three

Status:

Strength: G 315 Defense: G 305 Dexterity: G 351 Agility: G 344 Magic: E 596

Mage: E

Magic Resistance: F

Magic:

Aqua Ring: Sign of Water Bearer. Creates an area of healing around the caster. Last as long as the caster wills it. Heals physical ailments, but not status ailments. (Currently Active)

Illusio: Sign of the Two Fish. Summons illusory copies of the caster that scatter in different directions. Number is chosen by the caster. (Currently Active)

Aurata: Sign of the Ram. Creates a golden barrier of protection that stops all attacks. Takes the shape of a semi-circle in front of the caster. (Currently Active)

Datauri: Sign of the Bull. Gives the caster the fist-fighter development ability, as well as boosts to their Strength and Endurance. Last for fifteen minutes.

Geminus: Sign of the Twins. Splits the caster, and their status, in two. Damage is shared between the two copies.

Canti Pinc: Sign of the Crab. The caster's targets are grabbed by a set of large claws that holds the caster's enemies in place.

Brave Heart: Sign of the Lion. Emits a roar from the caster that instills fears in their enemies. The strength of fear is proportionate to the difference of ability between caster and target.

Vir Purgent: Sign of the Maiden. Cloaks the caster and nearby targets in a cleansing aura. Removes status ailments and curses.

Stat Subcin: Sign of the Scales. Moves status points from one category to another in the target. Caster cannot use on themselves and cannot shift more than status maximum.

Vene Mors: Sign of the Scorpion. A single target attack that poisons the caster's target. The poison effect lasts until the caster dispels the magic.

Celestial Shot: Sign of the Archer. Fires a magical arrow, power proportionate to the user's mind.

Ariedesu Irrue: Sign of the Sea-Goat. Creates a spectral charging goat that charges forward and knocks aside one's enemies.

Skills:

Constellation Shift: Caster has access to twelve magic, but only ever three at one time. The available spells rotate with every status update through a set order. Spells can only rotate once a week.

Mind Load: Increases power stat when attacking by using mind. Active Load.

Star Bright: Raises the user's magic stat when standing under the stars.

Chapter Text

The last day of the tournament was a strange one for Hestia. She woke up before everyone else, which never happened. Now with some free time, she went about setting up a pot of tea. When that was done, she pulled out a book she had been reading. The story was about a distressed mother who adventured to save her children. Hestia had read it before, but she liked rereading it.

Since Hestia was sitting in the lounge, she could see the rest of her Familia start to wake up. The first one up was Elwin.

"Where are you going?" asked Hestia, who closed her book.

Elwin smiled, "Riveria invited me to breakfast. I'm meeting her at Twilight Manor. Is that ok?"

Hestia nodded, "For sure! I think the more time you spend with her, the better; I'm happy for you."

He nodded and walked out the door. After he left, Hestia returned to her book.

The next people up and about were Urashima and Otohime. Urashima was off to the clinic, and Otohime insisted on joining him. The Princess was making quite a fuss.

"Princess, I promise you, I'm fine. I have my spare arms in. You don't have to worry so much," complained Urashima affectionately.

"I don't care what you say," responded Otohime, "My Ura was hurt and needs to get a check-up, so I'm going to worry all I want. Thank you very much."

The two argued as they left, waving at Hestia as they went. The Goddess happily returned the wave. Then it was Welf and Lily, whose turn it was to cook breakfast. Hestia explained the situation to the two of them about who was actually going to be there. Next up were Haruhime and Mikoto, mostly because Haruhime was starting her maidly duties and Mikoto got up with her. The last up were Ryuu and Bell.

"Well, well, well, you two never sleep in. What's the special occasion?" asked Hestia, eyes glinting. She didn't like that the two of them woke up at the time and the implications behind it.

The two blushed as Bell stammered, "We-we-we were up to nothing!"

"Oh, so you two were together?"

"NO!"

Ryuu chose to keep walking.

Hestia smiled and patted the spot next to her as she closed her book. Bell took a seat, still beet red.

"Yes, Goddess?"

Hestia shrugged, "Nothing important, I just wanted to talk with my favourite child, is all. What are you up to today?"

Since it was the doubles level four tournament and they didn't know anyone personally, they were taking the day to themselves. Ura and Otohime were at the clinic, Elwin was with Riveria, and the rest were just trying to figure out how to spend the day.

The level four tournaments also worked differently. Since there weren't many level fours in Orario, the melee happened in the morning, and then the top eight began the tournament in the afternoon. Better for time-saving, apparently.

Bell seemed to consider Hestia's question, "I don't know. I wasn't thinking of anything special. I might do some training in the yard, but that's it."

Hestia rolled her eyes, "All you do is train. I'm not going to say to not do it, but at least try and think of something else to do over breakfast," Hestia stood up and stretched, "I don't know, visit Naza or something. Talk to people, Bell!"

The tiny Goddess then dragged him off to the dining table. There they learned that Welf was going to be trying to repair Urashima's arms, Haruhime and Mikoto were going to spend time with Chigusa, Lily was doing book work, and Ryuu was spending the day helping out at the Hostess.

"Mamma Mia asked if I could help her out. There are many more adventurers in the city right now," Ryuu turned to Hestia, "Is that ok?"

Hestia nodded, "For sure! The Hostess has always been nice to us…even if Freya was hiding there…"

Bell decided that he was going to say hi to Miach Familia, and maybe Eina too. He had spent so much time training and fighting and worrying that he had forgotten about his other friends. After breakfast, he left with Ryuu, since they were travelling in the same direction.

"So Bell has anything interesting happened with the sword princess?" asked Ryuu.

Bell blushed but shook his head.

"Oh, so are you…interested…in her?"

Bell sighed, "I don't know. There's so much that's confusing me…I have a lot to figure out…"

Ryuu nodded, putting her own feelings aside to help her friend, "Do not be afraid. People are here standing with you. And I am sure, whatever you decide, Ais will still stand by your side."

Bell almost said more, but he held himself back. There was so much more at stake than his love life. His Familia was in danger. Ryuu, Hestia, and everyone else shouldn't have to waste time listening to him. It was better to keep everything tucked inside.

'If I could only find someone to talk to,' he thought.

"Ah! Bell!"

The voice shocked both members of Hestia Familia into stopping. They turned to find Hermes sauntering towards them. For once, he was alone. Asfi was nowhere in sight.

Even though Bell didn't like the God, he bowed, "Lord Hermes, what are you doing here?"

Hermes smiled, but unlike his usual jester's face, this one was brimming with sincerity, "I'm here to repay an old favour to a friend."

The God held out his hand, "Bell, you have no reason to trust me, but I would like you to come with me. If only for a minute."

"I must insist that you leave Lord Hermes," replied Ryuu, stepping in front of Bell. "Bell, you do not need to help this charlatan," she turned back to the God, "Also, shouldn't you be at the arena?"

Hermes nodded, "You're right, Ryuu, but this isn't about me, I promise. And I got someone to take my place for today."

"Then who is it for?" asked Ryuu.

The God shook his head, "This is something only Bell should know. If he chooses to come with me and decides to tell you, that will be ok. Until that time, though, I will only tell him."

Ryuu glared at the God, "That is absurd!"

"I'll go."

Bell was confused. His emotions were a mess, and he thought that he didn't have anyone to confide in. He needed a distraction, and it seems that Hermes was willing to provide one. Maybe logic said not to trust him, but Bell's intuition said that he should walk with the God.

Bell bid his goodbyes to Ryuu and followed Hermes. The God did not make conversation. Instead, he led Bell to the Adventurer Graveyard. Then Hermes led him past some bushes to a small clearing. Bell remembered this spot. This was where Hermes had shown Bell those three unmarked graves.

"Lord Hermes, why did you bring me here?" asked Bell, completely lost.

"Bell, you feel like you can't talk to people right now, correct?"

Bell's eyes almost popped out, "How did you know?"

Hermes gave a rueful chuckle, "I know you'll hate me for saying this, but we are in similar positions," Hermes squatted down at one of the graves, "There is much that I know, that I cannot say. There are even more secrets that I hold, grasped at my heart," he sighed, "It truly is a hard journey ahead."

Bell stood next to Hermes, studying the grave in front of him, "What does that have to do with these graves?"

"If you can't tell anyone alive, then why not trust your secrets with the dead?" replied the God. He nodded towards the unmarked tombstone in front of them, "This one especially, I am sure she'll be happy to hear from you."

Bell got down to get a closer look, "Hermes, who was she?" Something clenched the boy's heart, "Why do I feel so sad?"

Hermes looked at the ground, "Bell, I'm going to tell you something, but only if you promise that you won't ask any questions. I can't tell you anything else right now, but this one little fact."

He put a hand on Bell's shoulder, giving a firm squeeze, "Bell, will you trust me this once? For her?"

Bell nodded, compelled by some divine force.

Hermes turned back to the grave, "This marker is for a woman named Alfia. She was a member of Hera Familia and a level seven adventurer. She was also your Aunt."

Bell fell silent, and then he cried. No, he wept. For the boy who only ever had an adopted grandfather, something in him cracked. Maybe, he should've been shocked, but he was crying instead. Tears of joy fell to the ground; he had a family. For so long, he had sat in the dark. His grandfather had never even told him the names of his parents. He knew no mother or father, nor any loved ones. Eventually, he had found a family, a Familia, but hearing he had an aunt was…indescribable for the little boy. He had not been alone or sprung up from nothing. Bell Cranel had found that he had a history.

Hermes watched the boy cry for a minute before he spoke again.

"Speak to her, Bell. Tell her everything that happened to you. Tell her your problems and your woes. She won't respond, but she'll listen, Bell."

"Wait! Lord Hermes! Does this mean…you know about my parents?" asked Bell.

Hermes held a finger to his lips, a sad smile tugging at his lips, "No questions, remember?"

The God left then, and the boy sat in front of the grave.

At the same time, in front of Twilight Manor, Elwin was let through the gate. His hair was in a bun that was plonked on the top of his head. As he walked in, people stopped to stare at him. The worst were the elves, who bowed. He stopped in front of one of them to tap them on the shoulder.

The elf woman seemed to throw herself up, her pointy ears swaying.

"Yes, Lord Elwin? How may I be of service to you?"

Elwin's head tilted, "Lord? What do you mean?" He shook his head, "You know what, never mind, I'm here to see Big Sis Riveria, any idea where she is?"

The elf, named Alicia apparently, pointed him towards the garden and bowed as he left. The interaction left him confused. Since he was still watching and pondering the worship these elves gave him, he didn't notice the other person walking down the hall.

There was a familiar-sounding 'eep' as Elwin knocked into something soft. He was faced with Lefiya, still in her pyjamas, as she came back from the bathroom. The tired little elf girl had been rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, so she didn't see him. She began to panic, trying to find something to say as she blushed.

Elwin hadn't noticed that, though, because his brain had stopped working. Apparently, the sight of Lefiya's legs beneath her nightgown was too much for him. The bastard prince stared for an obscene amount of time at the pale thighs beneath the sheer gown before someone finally snapped him out of it.

"Oi! That's a bad look on your face, elf boy!" said Tione, walking down the hall. As she glared at Elwin, ready to give him a piece of her mind, Alicia came running.

"Please, Tione, wait! You mustn't hurt Lord Elwin!" Alicia took a protective stance, hands extended, in front of the half-elf, "He is Riveria's little brother."

When Elwin tapped her on the shoulder, Alicia blushed and turned to face him, "Yes, Lord Elwin?"

"Why are you calling me a Lord?" Elwin's brow furrowed, "I'm just an adventurer and a bastard son…"

Alicia shook her head, "No! You are the handsome Lord Elwin, a descendant of the King of the Elves! You are royalty!"

"Handsome?"

Lefiya's brain started working in overdrive then. She felt her blood boil, "Excuse me, Alicia, but please take care who you are speaking to!"

"What do you mean?" asked Alicia with feigned innocence.

Lefiya's eyes narrowed, "You know exactly what I mean!"

Now, Tione started putting the pieces together. She looked at Elwin, who had no clue what was happening, and dragged him away by the wrist.

"Those elves can fight like amazons when they want to," she explained. Elwin nodded, still confused, but resigned to being at the mercy of powerful women.

Tione let go once they were out of sight and asked him why he was visiting. When Elwin explained, she nodded and led him to the garden.

Riveria was already at the table, playing with her cutlery. The typically regal high elf was fidgeting and was constantly looking around the area. When she spotted Elwin, she smiled and rose to meet him. She pulled her little brother into a hug.

When she pulled back, she frowned, "What took you so long?"

"Some of your Familia decided to be weird," responded Elwin.

Before Riveria could ask another question, Tione explained the situation. At the end of it, Riveria sighed and pinched her nose.

"I swear, these children…" Riveria looked to Tione, "but can you let Lefiya know that she's welcome to join us?"

Tione nodded and left. As she did, the Sword Princess came in, a blank look on her face. She walked up to the table and faced Elwin.

"Do you know where Bell is today?" she asked.

Elwin shook his head, "I was the first one out of the house."

Ais turned to go hunt down her bunny before Riveria stopped her, "Give the boy some space, Ais."

Ais faced Riveria and pouted. She nodded though and marched back inside to look for Tiona and Tione.

Elwin chuckled, and Riveria raised an eyebrow. The two took their seats before he spoke. As he did, Riveria poured the tea.

"It's just nice to see that my Familia isn't the only weird one."

Riveria nodded, "Oh yes, I don't think there's a Familia out there that isn't a little weird," she smirked, "We do end up taking after our Gods and Goddesses after all."

Elwin rolled his eyes, "I've definitely been eating more potato puffs," he grabbed a pastry, "This is definitely a welcome change."

"Does Hestia Familia not provide good food?" asked Riveria, her protective instincts showing.

Elwin shook his head, "Not at all. Just depends on the day." At Riveria's confused gaze, he explained, "We take turns cooking. Any day Mikoto cooks is the best, Bell and Haruhime are good too, same with Urashima. Ryuu's ok. Otohime is…trying her best. The rest, though?" He shrugged, "Welf likes meat a bit too much, Lily needs to stop being so cheap, and Hestia just brings food from her work stall."

"Well, if you ever want a change, let me know," Riveria smiled, "I'd be happy to go out for dinner with you. We do have a lot to catch up on after all."

Elwin smiled back, "For sure, whenever you want."

Riveria reached for a small cake, "I have to ask, though, why come to Orario now?"

Elwin studied the table, "Well, I always knew that you were out there, but there weren't a lot to do about it, you know? No opportunities to leave Carien. Then Welf and Ryuu showed up," Elwin grinned, "That was a good day. They came to visit Lady Hecate on behalf of Hestia. Apparently, they knew each other up in heaven. When I heard where they came from…I may have begged them to tell me everything they knew about you…"

Riveria felt her cheeks warm, but she tried to dismiss it. She pressed what she hoped was a convincing frown to her face, "I hope you didn't bother them too much."

Elwin chuckled, "Only enough to let me join them. And then to convince Hestia and Lady Hecate to let me convert."

"How did you convince Lady Hecate? I don't think many Goddesses would let a level three adventurer leave their Familia, especially outside Orario," replied Riveria.

Elwin's grin grew nostalgic, "Mother helped, same with my old captain. They argued that it would be unfair to not let me meet you."

"Old Captain?"

Elwin nodded, "Yes, Morgana. She's the strongest mage I know," Elwin smirked, "Or should I say, the second strongest?"

Riveria didn't rise to the bait; instead, she looked up to the sky, "I think I would like to meet them one day."

Before the conversation could continue, though, they heard a polite cough from the archway. Standing in its shadow was Lefiya. When she stepped into the sunlight, Elwin's jaw dropped. She only wore a simple pink and blue dress and let her hair down, and it was too much for him. He stood up to pull out her chair, which she accepted with a stammered thank you.

Neither could make eye contact, so Riveria helped them along.

"Elwin, doesn't Lefiya look wonderful today?" she asked.

"She's stunning," replied Elwin in wonder before he added in the same tone, "but she's beautiful every day."

At Lefiya's stunned silence, Riveria nodded, "Too true. That's a very kind thing to say, though, don't you agree, Lefiya?"

Lefiya nodded but didn't add anything.

Inwardly, Riveria groaned. These two were unbearably thick. The only reason she kept helping was that they both deserved some form of happiness.

Back in the graveyard, Bell was lifting the weight from his shoulders.

"But then, Mikoto stood up! She was able to win the fight! Which meant she doubled her level! It was incredible, Aunt Alfia!" exclaimed the boy, lost in the joy of talking to a real family member. He had been talking for hours now.

Bell grinned, "Really, everyone in my Familia is incredible," his face became serious, "Which is why I'm scared, Auntie. These people are incredible, and I'm just me. I'm weak, stupid, and a coward. Not to mention, Freya is after me…why are these people standing in the way? Why are they protecting me?"

Silence was his response.

Bell was happy to talk without worrying about who heard him, but he also wanted a hug. He wanted someone to hold tight and tell him that everything was going to be ok. As if in response to his thoughts, a warm breeze stirred. It was nothing but a coincidence, and Bell knew that, but for just a second, he pretended that it was his Aunt.

He stayed a little bit longer before he made his way home. He was trying to be home for dinner but was met with his Goddess and supporter waiting outside. Hestia did not seem pleased, and neither did Lily.

"So, I hear from Ryuu that you went off with Hermes?" asked Hestia.

Bell hung his head in silence.

Hestia tapped her foot, hands on her hips, "Well? What did he want to talk to you about?"

"I can't tell you," mumbled Bell.

"Master Bell, you're going to have to speak up," replied Lily as she glared.

"I can't tell you," said Bell.

"As your Goddess, you have to tell me," answered Hestia, "You can't keep secrets, Bell, not when we're all in danger."

He didn't completely understand why, but Bell trusted Hermes. The God's warning not to tell anyone rang through Bell's head, and he chose to listen to the God one more time.

Bell shook his head, "I can't tell you…please."

"Why not Master Bell?" asked Lily, outraged. Why was Bell keeping a secret? Didn't he trust her? She was supposed to be his supporter.

Bell felt himself trembling, "Please, stop asking." If they kept prodding, Bell would break. He would spill all the secrets, and he didn't want to. He wanted to keep Aunt Alfia to himself.

"Bell, please look at me," asked Hestia. Her voice was soft.

Slowly, Bell looked up and met his Goddess's eyes. She frowned, "You've been crying, haven't you?"

Hestia came down the steps to rub her thumb over Bell's tear tracts. The Goddess studied him for a second before sighing.

"Can I trust that this has nothing to do with our Familia or our situation?" asked Hestia.

Bell nodded, "I swear, it's just something for me… I'm sorry."

Hestia shook her head and smiled, "Hey, we're all entitled to secrets, right? I just want you to know, though, I'm always here. But can you at least tell me what the secret's about?"

"It involves my family," replied Bell quietly.

Hestia nodded, the pieces falling into place, "Ok, well, if you ever feel comfortable enough to talk, let me know. I'm a pretty useless Goddess, but I'll always try to listen!"

Hestia stepped back and clapped her hands, "Alright then! Time to get ready for dinner!" Hestia smirked, "Since Bell had us all worry today about where he was, he won't mind cooking, won't he?"

Bell smiled, "Leave it to me, my Goddess!"

Lily looked on incredulous. As Bell left for the kitchen, she pulled Hestia to the side.

"You're really not going to try and learn what happened, Goddess Hestia?"

Hestia shrugged, "I mean, we're keeping a secret from him too."

"Yes, but we have a reason!" replied Lily.

"And I'm sure Bell does too," Hestia placed both hands on the prum's shoulders, "We just have to trust him."

Lily frowned, "Lily doesn't like it. This is Hermes, and Master Bell is easily fooled."

Hestia walked off, "Hermes is manipulative, but not intentionally cruel. Besides, he cares about Bell, too, in his own way. I'm sure he had some reason."

Lily disagreed with the Goddess, so she went about dinner fuming. She was quiet while everyone ate. Urashima and Otohime returned from the clinic and joined them, but Elwin sent along a note saying that he would have dinner with Riveria. He would be back later that night.

That meant that Elwin was the only one who didn't pick up on Lily's foul mood. She hated when Bell kept secrets. She was supposed to be his supporter! She was supposed to help him and carry his burdens. How could she do that when he kept secrets from her? Maybe she was being unfair, but she wanted to be there for him, always.

After dinner, while she was studying some ancient strategy books at her desk, Bell came to visit. He knocked on the door to her room and poked his head inside.

"Lily, can we talk?"

Lily grunted, not putting her book down. Bell grabbed the spare chair and sat down, facing her. He didn't seem to know what to say, though.

"If Master Bell has something to say, he better say it. Lily doesn't have time for his indecisiveness," replied the prum, scratching away with her pen as she wrote notes.

"Lily, you know that I have no family, right?"

That made Lily stop moving. The little girl nodded as she set her pen down and closed the books arrayed in front of her. She turned her body towards Bell, motioning for him to continue.

Bell wrung his hands, "Well, I think Hermes knows something. He told me about someone…close to me…" He looked her in the eyes, "It's not that I don't trust you, I just want to…have this. To have a family…"

"I thought we were your family…" whispered Lily.

Bell smiled, "You are Lily. I love you all so much it hurts, but this is different. I swear, I'm not trying to hurt you or hide something. I just want to have this just for me." Bell looked down, "I know I'm being selfish."

Lily shook her head, her messy hair bouncing, "Lily doesn't think so. Master Bell is allowed secrets; it just hurts Lily because…"

"Because what?"

Lily's eyes barely held back tears, "Lily is Master Bell's supporter. It's selfish for Lily to say, but Lily wants to be the one to bear Master Bell's burdens, all of them."

"That is selfish, but I'm being pretty selfish too. I promise Lily that there is no one in this world besides the Goddess I trust more than you. It's going to sound terrible when I say it, but I'll always want you standing by my side, supporting me."

They both started crying then. After an intense session of hugging, the two sat together and talked well into the night.

At that exact moment, below Daedalus Street, Freya stood in front of a great door. Her executives were arrayed behind her.

"So, this door will open tomorrow, and our allies will begin their assault?" asked the Goddess.

Hedin nodded, "It will be the mindless underlings, but apparently, he's sending one of his captains too. To get the job done."

Freya smiled, delusion oozing from every pore, "How wonderful! This will most certainly be a beautiful event!"

The next day was also the last day of the tournament. And Hestia Familia had someone to root for in the level four single's tournament, apparently.

"I can't believe Hermes would let Aisha fight…if she wins, she becomes a level five top tier adventurer…and his Familia rank shoots all the way up!" said Hestia over breakfast.

Haruhime smiled, "Miss Aisha said that she didn't give him a choice. She forced the God's hand."

Ryuu grinned, "That sounds like her."

"We'll have to cheer our hearts out for her then!" declared Welf.

After breakfast, they all left for the arena. Partway, Urashima and Otohime split off to head to the clinic. Urashima was most likely ok, but Airmid wanted to make sure. She would be washing his stumps today and resewing some old scars, so he would be under heavy anesthesia all day. Otohime was going to keep him company and protect him, naturally.

Initially, the plan was just to find some seats in the stands. Hestia Familia didn't want to abuse Loki's hospitality. That changed, though, when they saw Riveria leading Lefiya, Ais, and the amazon twins. The high elf was rather insistent that they join her and the others.

When they got to the booth, Riveria pulled Hestia to the side and started her interrogation. The elf royalty wanted to make sure that Hestia was behaving properly for her little brother. Meanwhile, the Sword Princess was growing very frustrated.

"Bell…" said Ais for the fifth time.

And for the fifth time, Bell didn't hear her. He was too busy chatting with Lily. After last night, Bell realized that he hadn't spent enough time with the rest of his Familia. So, he promised himself that he would talk to Lily, Welf, and the others all day. However, this meant that a certain blonde adventurer was thoroughly ignored.

"Master Bell! We should see if we can find some crepes later!" said Lily.

Bell nodded along, and Ais pouted. She wanted to get crepes with him too…

"Oh, Sir Bell, I believe Haruhime was planning on looking for some new books. Would you like to join her?" asked Mikoto for her childhood friend.

"Of course! I'm sure we'll be able to find some great ones!" replied Bell.

Internally, little Ais was fuming with anger. Every time she tried to get Bell's attention, he didn't seem to notice.

Down in the arena, Aisha was kicking ass. Even though she hadn't been a level four for long, she still trounced most of her opponents. After everything she had been through, these little adventurers didn't scare her. Besides, unlike them, she had something to fight for. Her dumb little sister was in danger, and if Aisha was going to do something about it, she had to become much stronger.

The melee was over relatively quickly. In the level four tournament, there weren't many Freya goons. Any Familia with a level four was usually too smart, careful, or powerful to get totally bullied by Freya. This meant that this was an actual battle between adventurers.

As everyone broke for lunch, Ais went to Bell.

"Bell, do you want to go get some lunch together?" she asked.

"Sorry, Ais! I promised Welf we'd go hunt down some meat skewers!" replied Bell. To his credit, he did seem sorry that he wasn't going with her. Before Ais could ask to join, he had already left. She had a deep pout on her face. Instead, she ended up with Tiona and Tione. Lefiya wasn't with them, though. She had left to go get food with Elwin and Riveria. The half-elf and regular elf hadn't said much to each other though, they were both too enraptured with how the other looked.

Riveria sighed inwardly.

The three ate lunch, but conversation was rough and stilted. Eventually, Riveria had had enough.

"I am going to return to my seat," said the high elf. When the other two started to get up, she waved them off, "No, I want you two to finish. Lefiya, why don't you show my little brother where the best pastries are?"

The little elf looked between the two royals, "Are you sure Lady Riveria?"

"Please, be my guest," was Riveria's response.

She left then and was pleased when no one followed her. She made her way back to her Familia along.

When the fights resumed, everyone noticed the absence of their mages and smiled. There would be some wonderful teasing to be done later.

Ais was left confused and a little upset. How come Lefiya got to have such an easy time hanging out with Elwin? Why couldn't she just do the same with Bell?

After the quarterfinal matches, Ais was finally able to corner Bell.

"Bell, why are you ignoring me?" asked Ais, straight-faced.

Bell spluttered, "I'm not! I didn't mean to! I'm sorry!"

Ais kept pouting, "Well, you did, and I don't forgive you. I want to spend time with you too. You're getting dinner with me tonight, ok?"

Bell cursed her naivety then. He thought that she didn't fully understand what she was implying. But Ais did understand…a little bit. She had spent a lot of time working to figure out what exactly she was feeling. She had asked Riveria why her heart kept beating so fast around Bell, and Riveria explained that it meant that she cared a great deal about him. Ais wanted to know more, but Riveria insisted that the best way to understand was to talk to Bell herself.

"Woah there Wallenwhatisit! Back off!" cried Hestia, jumping in the way. The two had a stare-off than before Riveria thumped Ais.

"That's enough. Deal with that problem later. Our priority right now is to cheer on our fellow Familia members," replied the high elf.

"Lady Riveria is correct," added Ryuu, "Miss Wallenstein, you may talk to Bell later."

Ais didn't like it, but she nodded. When she tried to sit next to Bell, the rest of the women from his Familia took her spots. She was left to sit by herself, with Tione and Tiona comforting her. She caught Bell looking at her from time to time, though, and that made her happy.

Down in the arena, Aisha made it all the way to the finals. Her opponent was a large half-dwarf man who wielded a mighty battle axe.

"Haha!" said the dwarf, "To think I would be facing off with Antianeira! How wonderful! Now come at me!"

Ganesha rang his great gong, and the battle began.

Aisha pushed off with her foot, propelling herself forward. She swung her great padao down and was met with the haft of the dwarf's battle-axe. A few more swings confirmed her fears; she was outmatched strength-wise.

She hopped back then, trying to get some space. Her opponent didn't let that happen, though. He came after her, axe whistling as it traced great looping arcs.

Aisha got pushed onto the defensive. Her padao became a tool for parries and blocks. Eventually, she was forced to back up all the way to the arena's wall.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! It looks like the mighty Golin has cornered Aisha Belka! Is this the end of the proud amazon?" cried out Ibri, "Any comment on your child's situation, Hermes?"

"Not at all! Aisha got herself into this situation; I'm sure she'll be able to get herself out of it," replied the God.

Indeed, Aisha was able to get out of it. She jumped and pushed herself off the wall, sailing over Golin's head. When she came down, she swept her leg out, bringing the great dwarven warrior to the floor. She brought her padao down, but he was able to roll out of the way. However, the force of the padao was enough to crack the ground. All either fighter needed was one good hit to win.

The two danced then, twirling around each other, their weapons knocking. Golin planted his feet, turning in place to try and hit Aisha. He had both hands wrapped around his mighty axe, and Aisha was constantly moving around him. She began chanting.

"Oh! It seems Antianeira is trying to get her magic off!" declared Ibri.

That was the moment Golin had been waiting for, though. No matter how good one was at concurrent chanting, they had to dedicate at least a little bit of their attention to the task. This attention split meant that Golin could finally land a solid hit. His axe came down. Thankfully, he had turned it so that its face hit Aisha, not a blade. However, the blow still brought Aisha to dirt. Her face slammed down, and Golin used the opportunity to stomp on her with his boot.

As Aisha laid there, drifting into unconsciousness, she got angry; no, she got pissed. Aisha Belka was tired of losing. She had lost to that braggart wolf, Bete Loga, multiple times. That boy Bell Cranel defeated her once and only kept getting stronger. And before all that, Aisha had lost to the disgusting toad and her miserable Goddess. Aisha's rage at Phyrne and Ishtar built. Her anger at losing fuelled her. She crushed the hard-packed dirt of the arena in her hands. She was done with it. She wasn't going to lose ever again. When Golin brought his boot up for one final blow, Aisha pushed herself up to tackle him.

When she brought him down, she knew she could win. When it came to something like wrestling, where two bodies were knocking into each other, Aisha was the most experienced person in Orario. She grappled with the half-dwarf and wrapped her legs around his waist. Then one of her arms snaked its way around one of his. She started to restrict his movements with her body. Eventually, she got behind him and brought her hands around his throat.

She held him for what felt like hours. He tried to break free and rip her off, but she was undeterred. Her will was steel, and her spirit blazed as brightly as ever. As he started to pass out, she bent down to kiss his cheek.

"My my, what a fire you have inside of you," whispered Aisha. Even though Golin lost, he ended up a happy man.

Orario cheered then, and as the cheering died down, Aisha's God walked out. Hermes came to give her her last level four status update. As he stepped forward, Aisha smirked.

"You must be pretty pissed. Our Familia rank is going to shoot up now," said Aisha.

In reply, Hermes shook his head, "Not at all, my dear. Actually, I have to say, I'm quite proud of you."

Those last words were quiet and sincere. Aisha was shocked at the earnestness on Hermes's face. She had never heard those words before. Ishtar certainly never bothered saying that she was proud of her children. Warmth bloomed in Aisha's chest as Hermes updated her status. She called herself a fool for believing him, but she was happy for the moment.

When they finished, they got up to walk to a private room for Aisha's level up. As they left, though, a series of shuddering roars rose through Orario. They were the sounds of monsters crying out for all to hear.

With that, chaos ascended.

Chapter Text

Otohime and Urashima were at the clinic for Urashima's check-up. They had been there all day, with Urashima going through multiple blood tests and treatments. When Airmid saw the old scar tissue, she insisted on a thorough examination. She would not allow a single diseased-ridden bacterium. After many tests, Urashima had been given a small break to rest, and the two were now eating dinner between appointments.

"Say ahh!" said Otohime, bringing a spoonful of rice to Urashima's mouth.

Ura rolled his eyes but opened his mouth to accept the food. Otohime giggled as she repeated the process. The reason she had to feed him was that his prosthetic arms had been removed so Airmid could adequately clean and restitch his stumps.

The Dea Saint returned to the room, face passive as usual. The last thing to do was put Urashima asleep and dig into his arms to check for infection. She took away their empty dinner bowls before administering a small dose of anesthesia. Ura slipped away into unconsciousness.

As Airmid cleared away dirty dishes and prepared her tools, she said, "You don't have to be here. He'll be asleep for a while anyway."

Otohime nodded, smiling, "I know, but I want to be here," she reached out to brush away a bit of his hair, "Besides, he looks so peaceful like this."

As Otohime cleaned up the space around her faithful bodyguard, she noticed a strange little pouch hanging at Airmid's side.

"What's that?" asked the Far Eastern, leaning in to get a closer look.

Airmid followed the other girl's line of sight and grabbed the small bag. She brought it up to face level to properly show it off.

"This is a special dust mixture based on another variant from Melen. Apparently, the original worked to repel monsters. My new dust combination attracts them," explained Airmid.

"So, that powder is for attracting monsters? I'm guessing to force them to gather?" asked Otohime.

The Dea Saint nodded before getting to work. She carefully drained old puss from the scar tissue and set to applying anti-septic cream. She worked quietly and diligently. She was about halfway through the process when they heard the first roar.

What followed was a series of shrieks and screams from humans and monsters alike. The clinic shook, and the sound of frantic footsteps was heard. Airmid frowned as she stood up.

"You are a level four, yes? Please follow me," said the Dea Saint, heading out the door. Otohime followed, casting one last look at the knocked-out Urashima as she went.

They came into the hallway to find many Dian Cecht Familia members running around in chaos. Airmid grabbed the closest nurse.

"What's happening?" she asked, her face pulled into a frown.

"Monsters have begun to rampage all over the city. A crowd of them are heading this way!" replied the young attendant, "We're trying to get the patients to a secure room. And find some adventurers to man the doors!"

Otohime stepped up, "I'll go man the doors," she looked back where Ura was resting. She didn't have any weapons, and hand-to-hand combat wasn't her specialty. That left one option.

The ordinarily carefree girl's face was grave as she turned to Airmid, "I'd like to borrow that monster attracting dust of yours," she turned to the other nurse, "And don't send any other adventurers. Keep them in reserve."

The nurse seemed skeptical but nodded before she continued on her journey. Airmid arched an eyebrow but passed her bag of dust over.

"Anything I can do to help?" asked the greatest healer in Orario.

Otohime nodded, "Keep the people inside, no matter what you hear. And keep my Ura safe, please."

The last word was a desperate plea.

Airmid nodded, and the two women split. Otohime walked to the entrance, draping the bag of monster attracting dust around her neck. She strode with purpose, trying to get into the right mindset for her magic. The Princess began chanting as she walked.

"Great destroyer, thou are the devourer of worlds," a consuming black aura surrounded her, "You who would cleanse the world of the pure and impure, I beseech you," the lights started to dim, "Give me a fraction of your form," Otohime's mind began to cloud. She ran for the entrance, "Let me strike true terror into those who would look upon me. Let me be the one who would burn the world. Black wings envelop me! Burn this sack of flesh and give me thine true scales!" She felt her skin hardening, and it suddenly became hard to speak. She had to finish soon and prevent an Ignis Fautuus. The doors were right in front of her now. She burst outside to a horde of monsters, staring at the dust sack she carried with her.

As a child, Otohime had no magic. Which was strange. Usually, all royal family children, especially those close to succession, had at least one spell when they first received their status. In the beginning, this made her jealous. She wanted a cool magical power like her siblings. Mostly, she wanted it so they would stop bullying her. Getting it through…was much worse than she had ever imagined.

"Harbinger of doom! Give me your strength! Dracona Forma!"

In the arena, all of the spectators were too shocked to move. The first roar had been followed with silence. Then another great roar came, and the entire place turned to chaos. Citizens were scrambling, Guild workers were running around trying to establish communication, but it was the adventurers who sprang into action.

"Tiona, Ais, head to Daedalus Street!" commanded Riveria. Loki Familia was already running out onto the streets, "I'm going to find Lefiya and Elwin and start setting up an emergency healing center. Tione, go alert Finn!"

Hestia Familia was right on their heels.

"Miss Mikoto, take to the skies. Help Miss Ais and Miss Tiona find the monsters," began Lily, "Master Welf and Lady Haruhime, go with Lady Riveria to find Mister Elwin. Master Bell, you and Miss Ryuu will be with the Sword Princess. Lily is going to get Lady Otohime."

Something pinged Hestia's intuition, though. As the rest of the group began to split, she grabbed Ryuu's arm, "Ryuu, I want you to stay with me. There's something off with this…"

Ryuu looked confused but nodded, placing her faith in Hestia.

The rest of Hestia Familia began their operation. Mikoto finished chanting her magic and took off in flight, searching for monsters. Bell, Ais, and Tiona followed. The other party, consisting of Riveria, Welf, and Haruhime, went to find their mages and begin working with the Guild. By the sound of the roars, whatever was on the surface had been mostly contained to Daedalus, for now. That meant that the Guild employees and their assistants would be attempting to set up a barrier manned by whatever fighters they could find. Nobody knew how many monsters there were, though, so Lily had to start running fast to find their Princess and bodyguard.

Meanwhile, Hestia went looking for Guild employees to find out what was going on, and Ryuu followed. The elf had one hand on her blade and was checking every shadow for would-be attackers. The little Goddess found a pink-haired Guild staff scrambling with some papers.

"Hey! Any idea what's going on here?" asked the Goddess.

Misha shook her head, "The best we know is that some monsters found their way out of the dungeon, through that other entrance."

"Knossos," said Ryuu, memories of rage filling her mind. Hestia took one of her hands. Ryuu remembered to breathe, and to focus on protecting her precious Goddess.

"What's Ouranos and Fels doing about it?" asked Hestia.

"Master Fels has opened up the occulus communication stones," replied a new voice.

Eina Tulle was there now, a beacon of calm, not because she was calm, but because she had to be. Due to Eina becoming a more trusted member of the Guild in the past year, she was privy to some of its darker secrets. By proxy, Misha also figured out what happened as Eina's best friend and right-hand woman. Guild workers came flocking to her for orders, which she handed out with deftness. With one hand, she signed papers granting various requests and trades for supplies from Familias, and in her other hand was a white stone, which she offered to Hestia.

The Goddess took it and bent down to speak in private, "Hey Fels, any idea what the hell is going on here? Is it…you know?" Hestia bent down to whisper, "The Xenos?"

Hestia would never seriously entertain the idea that Wiene, or any of her friends, were behind the attack, but something seemed off. Something was niggling at the back of her brain.

"No, Goddess Hestia, I don't believe the Xenos are involved. At least, not the Xenos we know. I'll be asking Lyd if he heard anything, though," said Fels.

"Alright, then what can I do?" asked Hestia.

"Help the Guild keep organized and calm the people," responded Fels.

"Understood."

Hestia gave the stone back and turned to the Guild. The tiny Goddess got to work wrangling the employees; Ryuu smiled at their shocked faces. Everyone was used to the old Hestia, who was incredibly lazy and more than a little self-centred. She was still those things, but she had learned that there was a time and a place for it. This past year, she had found her own source of strength. Hestia had learned to take charge and act like a Goddess from Lady Athena. She wanted to be more than just her old worthless self. The itty-bitty Goddess had grown just as much as the rest of them.

Ryuu took up a lookout position surveying their surroundings, trying to keep an eye out. She was the first to spot the approaching shadows. One was particularly large and racing ahead of its pack.

Ryuu drew her new wooden sword and went to meet the Bloodsaurus baring down on them. She spared only a thought to the fact that a creature from as far down as floor thirty was here now on the surface. The elf was launched herself in an arc, her sword crashing down into the beast's skull as she plummeted. Unfortunately, the beast didn't come alone.

"Get everyone back in the arena!" Ordered Ryuu. The Guild was quick to comply. Adventurers who had been spectating were quick to join the elf and form a defensive line. They may have been competing rivals only a couple days ago, but now more important matters were at stake.

In the air, Mikoto flapped her wings as she soared. She shouted down the location of every beast she saw, "Another monster up ahead! Three turns to the left!"

Tiona, Ais, and Bell followed. Tiona had no weapon, only her fists, and Ais had to borrow a sword from a nearby vendor. The only one armed was Bell, who brought his weapons with him everywhere these days. Hakugen, and the Hestia Knife, traced lines of white and black as they tore through monsters.

Behind him, Ais was internally giddy. She was finally getting to fight alongside Bell! Her joy was only tempered by the fact that there were innocent people in danger. She ran alongside Bell, covering his flank as they tore through the monsters. He would shout a warning, and she would respond. Or she would start an attack, and he would finish it. Their tag-team work was most excellent. They were quick to communicate and shout orders.

"Just how many of these guys are there?" asked Tiona. She enjoyed fighting as much as the next person, but there were still many monsters out there. There were also many people in the crossfire. It wouldn't be long before the innocent got caught in the way.

What was strange, though, was the monster's behaviour. Occasionally, they'd stop and sniff the air. Then, they would change direction and start rampaging somewhere else, like they were looking for someone.

Bell noticed the oddity too, but to him, it seemed familiar. As if he had experienced this situation before. It wasn't until he saw a rampaging silverback that the pieces started to come together. His stunned expression almost cost him, though. The great ape almost punched him, but Ais was never going to let that happen. She turned to reprimand Bell for his carelessness when the boy started shouting.

"The Goddess is in danger!" cried out Bell. He turned then, calling out behind him, "I have to go! I promise I'll be back soon!"

Before Ais or Tiona could respond, Mikoto called out another monster's location. The samurai herself soon faced trouble, though, as flying monsters took notice of her. They swarmed the girl and forced her into aerial combat. Thankfully, she was also armed. Every member of Hestia Familia knew caution.

Mikoto proceeded to swoop and dive as she swung her katana, cutting through enemies. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as she began to utilize her new status to its fullest effect. The monsters in front of her cut like paper, and their magic stones rained down to the streets.

Unfortunately, there were still a lot of harpies to deal with. They swarmed the girl, and eventually, they could start dragging her down with their weight.

"Arcs Ray!"

An arrow of light shot then, and the weight lifted from Mikoto's body. Below her, Elwin and Lefiya took up supportive positions. Riveria used a small plaza to set up a command position. As the most senior adventurer there, everyone took heed of her words. Haruhime was there too, doling out items that they must have picked up along the way.

"Kazuchi!"

A blast of fire got Mikoto's attention. Welf aimed skyward with his magic sword, trying to hit the other aerial targets. Mikoto took that as her queue to return to battle.

Overall, things were going well. Although there was mass panic in the streets, no one had been majorly injured…yet. Which was why Bell was so worried. Upon seeing the silverback, the boy had a flashback to a similar event from over a year ago. This was like Monsterphilia, and at that time, the gorilla's target seemed to be …

"Goddess!" shouted Bell.

He had returned to the colosseum square to find Ryuu locked in combat with a rampaging loup-garou. This beast was different than the others, though; it seemed to study how Ryuu fought. The creature took its time in the fight and didn't rush into an attack. The monster blocked one of her sword swipes and then grabbed her blade. It used its monster strength to try and pull her in. The elf was able to kick away, though, and gain some space from her opponent.

Bell ran over and joined Ryuu. Goddess Hestia was working as hard as she could with the Guild to get citizens off the streets and into the arena. The colosseum was an easily defendable position, and there were already a lot of people just hanging around anyway.

"Bell, look at that thing's weapons," said Ryuu, bringing his attention back to the battle.

In the white loup garou's hands were metal swords, and when Bell really looked, he saw metal gauntlets hidden by the fur. This creature was armed and dangerous, and it seemed to recognize Bell. When it spotted him, the monster's mouth changed? It took a minute for Bell to register what the action was; the monster was smiling at him. The creature raised one of its stolen blades in a challenge.

"What's going on here?" asked Bell. He had expected mindless monsters to be targeting the Goddess, possibly charmed by Freya's magic, not whatever this was. This creature seemed to be brighter than it appeared. And if it was keeping up with Ryuu in combat, it had at least level five potential.

Bell was drowning in the possibilities, his thoughts a turbulent mess. Then he heard his vice-captain speak.

"Bell! Deal with the implications later! For now, we must face the challenge in front of us," declared the elf. She had read his mind, per usual.

The two took off then, an unspoken word to begin their assault. Their teamwork was flawless. As Bell and Ryuu weaved and dodged, the monster had no idea where to turn. One second, he'd be crossing blades with the scrawny boy, and then he'd howl in pain from the crushing attack to his knee by the elf.

It howled in rage, swinging a massive arm with surprising speed. Ryuu had the wind knocked out of her. Since she would need a moment to recover, Bell began duelling with the beast. His blades sang as they sparked off the wolf monster's knives. Even if the beast was stronger, Bell was faster and more agile. He could dodge every blow and have the time to be able to abuse every opening he saw. Cuts started crisscrossing the monster's flesh. Unfortunately, this was no adventurer, who was constrained by four limbs.

The monster used its great jaws to bite into Bell's shoulder next. It shook him like a rag doll before the boy was thrown across the square. The boy rolled away as quickly as he could, knowing that the beast would try and leap on him. Ais had explained as much in their practice bouts. Just as he got his feet under him, the beast was there. They resumed their deadly dance of daggers. Thankfully, in its addled rage, the monster had forgotten about the elf. Ryuu was there in a flash, at just the spot Bell needed her to be.

There was no need for talk; the two adventurers fought as one. In their Familia, Ryuu was often the only one who could keep pace with Bell in sparring. Beyond that, though, there was a much deeper bond. It was not long till they had brought the creature to its knees. At a signal from Bell, Ryuu took up a position behind the monster, sword raised and ready. Bell hovered in front of it, hesitant at his next action. At Ryuu's nod of encouragement, he mustered his courage.

"Excuse me, but you can you talk?" he asked, dreading the response.

The monster was quiet for a minute, and then it opened its mouth, "They call me Petron."

The creature's voice was rough and hoarse from misuse. Its canines were an acidic yellow colour, just like its eyes. The monster's words confirmed Bell's worst fears; this creature was a Xenos.

"Why are you here?" asked Bell, "Do Lyd and the others know about this?"

The loup-garou made a sound that must have been a laugh, "Those pathetic mongrels? I serve a much greater master, Bell Cranel. One that remembers your failure. Today I was supposed to ruin you, and that pathetic Goddess of yours," the monster looked over the panicking masses, "but this works just as well," Petron howled one last time, "I have fulfilled my tasks, now you do yours!"

Before Bell or Ryuu could respond, Petron jabbed his own claws into his chest. With a sickening wrench, he pulled out his magic stone and crushed it in his hands.

His last words were, "Better to die my own hands than a traitorous human's."

Everything turned to dust after that.

Bell stood there in shock, uncomprehending, until he felt someone grab his shoulder. He turned to find Hestia looking up at him.

"Are you going to be ok? Or do you need a second?" asked the Goddess. Her face looked terribly worried, and she seemed to hold her arms ready for a hug.

Bell breathed slowly and replied, "I'll be ok. Besides, there is still much to do," Bell looked at his Goddess, "Please stay close today; this reminds me too much of Monsterphilia."

Hestia nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. Still though, who did this?"

A terrifying roar came in answer; It was the sound of a dragon, but also not. For Hestia Familia, it was the worst thing they heard all day. They recognized that roar.

That was the sound that finally woke up Urashima. As he sat up, still groggy from the anesthesia, he took in his surroundings. He was in a large room with many people, many of whom were dressed like him, as patients. A small knot of lightly wounded adventurers stood in front of the barricaded entrance. Urashima pushed himself up with his hands (someone had been kind enough to install his backup prosthetics) and walked to the adventurers. At the back of the group was the Dea Saint, who was studying the door. She turned at the sound of Urashima's steps and nodded.

"I see you've woken up. How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Where is Otohime?" was his response.

Airmid motioned to the door, "She left to go fight the monsters and protect the patients," Airmid frowned, "She didn't carry any weapons, though."

Urashima felt his heart pounding, "You let her go alone?"

Airmid's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, "My duty is to protect the people of this city. No one else was in a position that could help her. Besides, she is a level four. I doubt there are many creatures out there that could defeat her."

This woman didn't understand, though. If Otohime left to fight a mob of monsters without a weapon, and Urashima was one of the people she had to protect, she would go with the worst option. Before anyone could object, the new level four charged through the barricade. This was bad, oh so very bad.

When he exited the clinic, he almost ran face-first into Lily. The young prum had made her way through the city, dispatching monsters as she went. As a level three, the battles had been much more manageable than she anticipated. At the sight of her fellow Familia member, her hackles dropped. Then she noticed he was alone.

"Lily was hoping that the stupid Princess didn't actually do it…"

Any small hope that Urashima held vanished, "Then the roar from earlier?"

"Lily believes that we should be on our way," the prum turned to run, Urashima right on her heels.

"Please be safe…" he said in prayer.

In the Far East, all members of the royal family had to undergo a rite of passage. Even before the Gods and Goddesses descended to the mortal plane, generations of Princes and Princesses had journeyed to the dragon's breeding ground up in the mountains to claim their destiny. The coming of the immortal deities had simply made the tradition more critical. Now, the journey was made multiple times in one's life; all to achieve the fabled feat of adventure required to level up. Otohime was no exception. In fact, she had more reason than most. She honestly didn't care if she ever became empress, but she needed to be strong to guarantee Urashima's safety. So, when she finally reached D levels in her stats, she volunteered as fast as possible for the next mountain expedition. She was on her way to becoming a level four.

Five nobles also had to make the journey, each from various branch families. They all looked down on the Third Princess, who they thought had never experienced tragedy. They all believed the First Prince's rumours that she kept a leper as a pet. They hated Otohime. Which was why they abandoned her in the mountains.

The young girl, who had only recently turned eighteen, had wandered the range for quite some time. Otohime had not found a beast worthy of a feat and was not allowed to go home until she did. Slowly, she ate through all her provided provisions. After that, she had to turn to hunting for sustenance. It was on one such hunt when she finally felt the presence. Since her hunger had dulled her senses, she had not noticed the dread. In the beginning, Otohime had assumed that the feeling in her stomach was just starvation. Then the wind kicked up. A sense of malice and despair washed over her; it was so strong that it paralyzed her. She felt a hot breath exhaled on her back, and then she remembered nothing except fainting…and a singular eye.

When Otohime woke up all those years ago, fear of the beast overtook her. She scrambled down the mountain to warn Lady Amaterasu, and her father, of the incoming calamity. Her fear of being too late was misguided, though. When she got home, all she found was peace. When the young girl told her story, most looked at her like she was crazy. Only three people believed her. The first was her beloved Ura, the second was her father, who was wise enough to take any and all threats seriously. The final one was Lady Amaterasu herself. The Goddess called for Otohime one day to update her status and discuss recent events. That was when the Princess levelled up.

Except, she had killed no monsters. In her confusion, she explained to Lady Amaterasu her journey. She explained how she had failed to kill anything. The part Amaterasu hung on, though, was her encounter with the beast she barely remembered. The usually kind and patient Goddess grilled Otohime for hours on her story. Eventually, the Goddess grabbed Otohime by the shoulders and swore her to secrecy. She was never to repeat the story of her journey ever again.

That same status update was when she gained her disgusting magic.

Back in the present, in Orario, Ganesha Familia did their duty. The city's guardians had mobilized perfectly and proved why they were still one of the most trusted Familias. In fact, they were so efficient that only one monster was left rampaging.

Apparently, some kind of new irregular dragon creature had appeared and was rampaging throughout Daedalus Street. It had already destroyed numerous buildings. The strange part, though, was that it only seemed to target monsters. If any adventurer was foolish enough to try and kill the beast, it defended itself, but other than that, all humans were left alone. A squad of level four adventurers had tried to put it down already, only to be left unconscious and bleeding.

That meant that it was Shakti's turn now. She had taken off across the city to bring the beast down, or at least hold it back till Loki or Freya Familia arrived. By all accounts, this was a powerful beast.

When Shakti finally caught sight of it, her breath hitched. The Dragonoid figure stood on two legs, a black whip-like tail trailing out behind it. Overall, the beast was three meters tall, at least. Its scales were black, with the occasional gold piece glimmering in the sun. It had vaguely humanoid arms and hands but with massive foot-long claws at the end. A great trail of horns went cascaded down its back, like hair. The beast also had a pair of reptilian wings, but the worst was its head. The creature's skull was caught somewhere between human and dragon. The eyes bore the vertical slit-like pupils of its kind, but its mouth still held the circular shape of a person: there was no elongated snout, just a delicate nose.

The half-dragon was bent over the ground now, sniffing. Searching for more prey, perhaps? Curiously, unlike other monsters ('or even Xenos' thought Shakti), this beast did not seem interested in magic stones. However, it was still a monster.

Shakti pushed off the ground, slamming her shoulder into the beast. It stumbled backwards and swung its head, searching for the attacker. When it found the level five adventurer, it swung its great tail. Shakti raised her spear in defence, but it appeared that had always been part of the dragon's plan. The tail wrapped itself around the haft of the spear, and the dragon pulled. Shakti was sent crashing forward, straight towards the beast. She felt its claws catch her and start closing around her head.

Before the beast could squeeze too tightly, though, Shakti stabbed its hand with a dagger. She had angled herself to slip a blade between the scales and was rewarded with a cry of pain. The beast dropped her in pain.

Shakti grabbed her spear off the ground and turned. With a tremendous thrust, she pierced the beast's leg. Now hobbled, the dragon began flapping its wings.

"Oh no, you don't!" screamed Shakti. She jumped into the air and slammed her fist into the dragon's head. Knocked sideways, the beast forgot its plan to fly. Rage overtook its mind. The dragon swung her head back around and opened her maw. The courtyard lit up as a great gout of flames poured out.

Shakti had to jump up onto a building to avoid being burned. As she came back down, spear pointed towards the earth, one of the dragon's scaled fists punched out into her ribcage. Shakti flew back and crashed into a high tower. Dazed, she started to fall towards the ground.

Thankfully, someone caught her. Tiona and Ais had been nearby when the fight began. Now, the Sword Princess saw a dragon, and her blood boiled.

"Tiona, she's mine," said Ais, stepping forward, "Awaken: Tempest."

Her blade came forward at full speed. The greatest monster killer in Orario was now sheathed in magic. Her Avenger skill burned her back. Ais Wallenstein swung her blade, aiming to decapitate the beast then and there. She was inches away…

About to kill another disgusting dragon…

"STOP!"

Just as her blade was about to cut through the creature's neck, she heard Bell's voice. Her blade halted, and her head turned. Bell came sprinting, Hestia on his back. Ryuu was not far behind. Mikoto, who Ais and Tiona had left behind, was quick to touch down as well. Even Elwin, Haruhime, and Welf were there, looks of horror on their faces.

"What do yo-"

Ais never finished her question, though, because the dragon attacked again. Its scaled fist made contact with her abdomen, and the Sword Princess went careening backwards. As she was pushed back but not sent flying, Tiona came to provide support.

"Yo! Mister Argonaut! Why'd we stop?" asked the Amazon, totally confused. Her fists were still raised towards the beast, but something felt horribly wrong. This was like when she had seen that Vouivre…

"Tsk, another sympathetic monster?"

The rest of Loki Familia executives had arrived, as well as almost every other top-tier adventurer in the city. The only people missing were all of Freya Familia. Bete, who had spoken, dropped to the ground, ready to do battle. He cracked his knuckles and marched forward. This creature wasn't going to hurt anyone else.

The irregular dragon, now surrounded, looked wary. Its head swung side to side like it was searching for someone. It paid no attention to the incoming executioner. However, just as Bete was about to begin his assault, Ryuu jumped in his way.

"This situation is much more difficult than you think, Bete Loga," said the elf, a mask of calm.

"Like hell it is! Now, move, elf! I don't care what alliance we have!"

Before the two could come to blows, a final voice rang out. Everyone turned to hear it, even the dragon.

"Stay away from her!"

Urashima Taro jumped down, Lily sprinting behind him.

"Oh, her, huh?" remarked Finn, quietly checking his thumb.

The dragon seemed to recognize Urashima, as its head dropped to nuzzle him when he got close. There were tears in Ura's eyes as he returned the gesture.

"You idiot Princess, you did this for me, didn't you? Well, it's over now…time to turn back," replied the bodyguard.

Something changed in the dragon's body language then. It adopted a more human stance, almost like it was shy. But an encouraging nod from Urashima kept it going. The dragon snorted before sending one last disapproving look towards Bete. Then, for lack of a better term…it shifted. The scales grew smaller until they looked like shredded human skin. The wings receded with an awful pop sound and left holes where they had once been, which oozed blood. The tail, too, seemed to slither back inside the body, a spot of flayed flesh all that remained. The claws retracted into well-manicured nails, leaving puss that fell to the ground. The horns on the back smoothed out into glossy black hair. And lastly, the reptilian eyes blinked and were normal. They were a familiar golden colour.

Those eyes shut just as quickly, though, as the Princess passed out on the spot. Urashima supported the now unconscious and injured Otohime, draping her in a blanket he had found along the way. He scooped her up in his arms, her body unshifting. The rest of the city stared on as he marched away. Varying looks of shock and disgust were on everybody's faces. The most horrified was Ais, who contemplated what she had almost done.

Later that day, when the streets had been cleaned, and the people calmed, a coalition of some of the most potent Familias met in Babel. There was to be an impromptu meeting to go over this shocking development.

One year ago, from the original assault on Knossos: Tsubaki, Shakti, Asfi, and Finn from Hephaistos, Ganesha, Hermes, and Loki Familia, respectively. Also in attendance was Ryuu. Hestia Familia had been specially invited by the Braver himself to attend the meeting. However, it was a unanimous decision not to send Bell, who often struggled with these negotiations. Instead, they chose to send their stony-faced vice-captain.

The five top-tier adventurers sat around a great table, with Royman and Fels also in attendance on behalf of the Guild.

"Ok, Finn, what's the situation?" asked Tsubaki. The high smith had no need for pleasantries. The sooner this business was settled, the better.

"Well, as we all saw, monsters invaded Orario. It seems like their origin point was Knossos, under Daedalus Street," Finn raised a hand when several people opened their mouths, "I have already stationed some of my Familia at the entrances under the city. We will be starting a full-scale investigation tomorrow."

"Then why are we here?" asked Tsubaki, "Seems like you already have the situation at hand."

Finn shook his head, "While we may have area secured, I don't like the idea of not knowing who was behind the attack."

Shakti snorted, "Please, this has Freya's name written all over it. She is one of the only people who would still have a key to Knossos," she looked at Ryuu, "Gale, I'd imagine that you saw how the monsters hunted?"

Ryuu nodded, "As did Goddess Hestia and Bell. Apparently, after pooling their information with mine, they think Freya has tried this before."

Ryuu had told the rest of the captains about what had happened at Monsterphilia last year.

When she finished, Finn started again, "That adds up with what Loki knows as well. That's twice now that Freya has brought monsters into the city…Royman, what does the Guild plan on doing?"

The fat elf rolled his eyes, "What can we do? Without any hard evidence, there's nothing to be done about it. We're barely able to keep our current restrictions in place as it is."

Before the rest could speak, Ryuu raised her hand, "You all should know, there's something else. There was a Xenos among the monsters."

Ryuu explained her and Bell's battle with the white loup-garou. By the end, everyone was staring at Fels.

The old philosopher hunched over, "For a while now, the Xenos have been in a state of…I guess you could call it Civil War. There are a growing number of new Xenos that refuse to believe that humans can be anything but hateful." Something shifted under Fel's hood, "If Lady Freya really is behind this attack, then this faction must be her ally. Only the Xenos would be able to lead monsters from the deep floors all the way up to the surface. No humans would know the right paths."

Tsubaki's nose scrunched, "If these new Xenos hate humans so much, why ally with Freya? It was her lot that slaughtered them last year."

A mournful chuckle came from the skeleton, "You look for a reason? These creatures are angry as they should be. I do not know how Freya convinced them, but I am sure that all it took was an opportunity."

"Opportunity for what?" asked Finn.

"Vengence," responded Ryuu.

"Even if they would die?"

Ryuu's eyes narrowed, "When it comes to vengeance, you don't care what happens after you get it."

The words of the infamous Gale Wind hung over the room. These creatures didn't care if they lived or died, just that they took as many people as possible with them.

Fels waved a hand, "As I said though, this is only a fraction of the Xenos. I will be in touch with Lyd to see what else he knows," Fels turned to Finn, "For now, investigate Knossos." Then to Shakti and Tsubaki, "Protect the people."

"And us?" asked Ryuu.

Royman stood up and pulled out an envelope, "At such times, the people look to adventurers for safety and security. Hestia Familia must go forward with their expedition if only to reassure the city that everything will be ok."

The head of the Guild placed the envelope in front of Ryuu. Obviously, there was more to this expedition than met the eye.

Ryuu glanced to Finn, "And will the Sword Princess and Thousand Elf still be accompanying us?"

Finn nodded.

Ryuu turned to Asfi, "And what of you, Andromeda?"

"I, and part of my Familia, will be leaving Orario for a short period," replied Perseus, "After the upcoming Denatus, Lord Hermes has a mission for us to accomplish outside the city. Aisha Belka, and a few others, will remain."

Before anyone could object, Fels spoke up again, "Lord Ouranos has personally sanctioned this mission. Hermes Familia's new objective is of the utmost secrecy and importance."

At that notice, Finn nodded, "Alright, anything else?"

"Yes," said Ryuu, standing. In front of the assembled Captains, the elf bowed as deeply as she could.

"On behalf of my Familia member, Otohime Nakamura, I extend her deepest regrets and apologies. At the time, she only did what she thought was best to protect the Dian Cecht Familia clinic. She does not ask for forgiveness or to escape punishment."

Tsubaki shrugged, "No one died, right? And the only people who got hurt were the ones stupid enough to challenge her." The one-eyed smith smirked, "Right, Shakti?"

The captain of Ganesha Familia glared at the smith, "I know of no such thing," Shakti turned to look at Ryuu, "But I agree with the cyclops, just this once. Today was a day of tough decisions for us all. I do not hold a grudge against your Familia, and I do not blame Otohime for my injuries. Who's to say what would've happened if she hadn't used her magic? Tell the girl, no one in Ganesha Familia blames her."

At that statement, Ryuu let out a long breath. The last of the day's tension eased from her shoulders. Obviously, this would do little to erase the guilt that Otohime felt, but at least there would be no legal repercussions from offended parties.

"With that, I end this meeting," declared Finn.

End of Arc One

Character Profile:

Otohime Nakamura:

Level Four

Status:

Strength: D 531 Defense: E 489 Dexterity: D 596 Agility: D 555 Magic: G 246

Abnormal Resistance: E

Magic Resistance: E

Spearman: G

Magic:

Dracona Forma: Turns the caster into a dragon-like monster. All stats are exponentially increased at the cost of total loss of mental faculties and mind-down when the spell is ended. Magic must be actively ended by the user, or else dragon form remains. Along with increased stats come the physical and magical traits of a dragon.

Skill:

Devoted Heart: As long as a beloved one is kept in mind, the skill bearer cannot be charmed by people or monsters.

Synthesis: User has a low-grade physical health regeneration when under direct sunlight.

Sunshine: User has increased stats when in direct sunlight.

Dragon Slayer: Heavily increases all abilities when fighting dragon-type monsters.

Chapter Text

A week had passed since the incursion, and Orario had returned to an uneasy state of peace. People whispered of possible attacks and the strange appearance of monsters in the streets. Most people started pointing fingers at the Guild; it was their job to protect the citizens, after all. The people's faith in their security fell, and all of Orario rose to a state of paranoia.

There were also many people whispering of the monster that now walked among them—that dragon-spawn from Hestia Familia. No one had seen her in a week, the prevailing rumour being that she was locked in the manor due to a fit of Monster Madness.

However, the truth was, Otohime was ashamed. She hadn't been seen because she locked herself in her room. She only came out to eat and participate in Familia meetings, but she often never said anything. It wasn't until a week to the day of the monster attack that Haruhime came to talk to her.

"Excuse me, Lady Otohime, I'm coming in," said the renard as she walked in.

As the Familia maid, Haruhime had a duty to make sure every room was clean. This served as the perfect excuse to comfort her fellow Familia member. She bustled about cleaning the floors and picking up trash. The entire time, Otohime sat cross-legged on her bed, frowning at nothing.

"This past week sure has been an event, has it not? Although, I think you must be used to such things, no?" asked Haruhime.

There was a non-committal grunt in response.

"Still though, even for Orario, this monster attack is troublesome. If it really is Freya, like Master Bell and Goddess Hestia say, then I'm scared for how we'll move forward. Do we take the time to examine our enemies or go for a surprise attack," the fox girl shook her head, "Such questions are beyond one as untalented as I."

Otohime still didn't respond. So, Haruhime crouched down to look the Princess in the eyes.

"The one thing I do know, though, is that we cannot fight her alone. We are your Familia now, and we will help you bear your burdens," Haruhime smiled then.

Otohime felt tears start to fall, "Even if I'm a disgusting monster?"

Haruhime pulled her into a hug, "Yes, even then. After all, I'm just a former prostitute. And a disgraced noble from the Far East. Me and you fit together perfectly."

Otohime nodded as she buried her face in Haruhime's shoulder. The young maid rubbed Otohime's back and whispered kind words. This Familia was a collection of outcasts and orphans, which meant that if they didn't take care of each other, no one would.

The two stayed like that for another fifteen minutes. Afterwards, the two former nobility went downstairs. They found their fellow Familia members hard at work examining maps and monster tomes. The only one missing was Welf, who was doing his job and repairing their equipment. At the sight of Otohime outside their room, though, they all smiled.

"Lady Otohime, I am glad to see you up and about!" said Mikoto, a large smile on her face.

Lily nodded, before returning to her work, "It's about time. Lily needs Lady Otohime to help check over the planned tactics for the expedition."

The others all chimed in then, and Bell even walked up to the Princess. His face was red, as usual, as he tried to offer his own form of encouragement.

"I know this'll sound pretty useless," began Bell, "But I want you to know that none of us think that you're a monster…and…um…we, or at least I, think that you did a good thing."

Bell couldn't look Otohime in the eyes because he was so nervous. He was such a stammering mess that Otohime's first reaction was to laugh, which she tried to suppress. Eventually, though, she couldn't hold it in anymore. The Princess lost it then. It started as a giggle and then grew to a loud uproarious belly laugh. It was not that the situation was hilarious, but that the Princess had an overload of emotions she needed to release. She laughed and laughed; her Familia was happy to hear the familiar sound. An Otohime who wasn't smiling, giggling, and enjoying everything the world had to offer might as well not be Otohime at all. When she finished, she pulled Bell into a sisterly hug.

She pulled back, still holding his shoulders, and said, "You are too cute! If I wasn't already head over heels for my amazing Ura…well, who knows?"

She winked then, leaving Bell to stand in shock. She then tackled Urashima, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Ura!" she cried, squeezing tight. He ruffled her hair with his one free arm.

Happy to see her back to normal, Hestia Familia began explaining what she had missed. The envelope that Royman gave Ryuu had given them a new expedition mission, apparently. Instead of just having to reach a new floor, they had to clear all the way to floor thirty-four, defeat both Monster Rexs on the way (Goliath and Amphisbaena) and investigate a disturbance on the thirtieth floor.

"Eh! That seems like an unfair amount of work!" cried Otohime.

Lily sighed, "As far as Lily can understand, it's because of the calibre of our party."

In total, there would be sixteen adventurers: the nine members of Hestia Familia, Ouka and Chigusa, Daphne and Cassandra, Aisha, and Ais and Lefiya. In terms of firepower, that was one level two, six levels threes, four level fours, four levels fives, and the Sword Princess. To put it lightly, it was quite a powerful group. This meant that any expedition had to be just as challenging. The other issue was that the Guild needed a big event to show the people that everything was fine. The masses needed reassurance, and Hestia Familia's expedition just happened to fit the bill.

"By the way, where is Goddess Hestia?" asked Otohime as she started checking Lili's battle formations. As a former Princess, she had been schooled in the art of war as part of her upbringing. She often went toe to toe with Lily in games of strategy.

"The gods are holding the traditional denatus at this time," replied Ryuu.

Otohime smiled, "Wait, so we're getting our aliases now?"

She was practically vibrating in her seat at the thought. Ryuu smiled. Even though she had been under a fit of melancholy just this morning, Otohime had bounced back as quickly as ever. Ryuu respected that kind of resiliency.

The elf nodded, "Yes, and due to our situation, I believe we will all be getting second names."

Elwin groaned from his spot by the shelves, hunting for magical reference books, "Let's just hope that the names aren't too bad."

"Absolutely not!" cried Hestia, banging her fist on the table. The Gods were near the end of their meeting, and there weren't many names left to give. In fact, all that remained were Hestia's children and Aisha Belka.

"Oh, come on! I like Bodacious Beauty!" cried out one God.

"No! Better one! Glittering Golden Girl!" cried out another.

Going from the weakest member of Hestia Familia to strongest meant that Haruhime was first on the chopping block. The second that the assembled deities laid eyes on the fox girl's portrait, all semblance of decorum went out the window. Each name was more vulgar than the last, as a competition for the horniest alias began.

"Blooming Buxom!"

"My Mistress!"

"Hey now! She can't just be yours!"

"That's enough!" screamed Hestia. Her voice carried over the assembly, and soon all the deities started to quiet down, shocked by the authoritative tone of the itty-bitty Goddess. Hestia took a deep breath, remembering her lessons with Athena, and pointed a finger to the room.

"How many times has my Familia had to save or help each of yours, huh?" asked the Goddess. She looked over to the left, "Magni and Modi, didn't my children rescue yours from certain death?"

The two Gods shrank in their seats, embarrassed. Hestia nodded before looking back to the assembled deities.

"Wasn't it my Bell who beat down the most monsters a week ago?" She looked over at Dian Cecht, "Your clinic would've been ruined if not for my Otohime going out there to sacrifice herself."

The stingy God grumbled but nodded.

Hestia faced the rest of the deities, "My Familia has done nothing but save your asses from day one! Every time there's an emergency, the city cries for my children to save the day, but when we need you? HA! You stood by and did nothing when Apollo attacked and when Freya attacked, but then you decide that you get to make fun of my children?" Hestia shook her head, "Honestly, I don't know if my children should be so helpful anymore. I know that you lot don't deserve it."

Hestia crossed her arms as she spoke, her blue shawl pulled tight around her. The assembled Gods and Goddesses felt shame then and sat quietly. Except for one, that is…

"Damn, itty-bitty, I didn't know you had it in you!" said Loki, from her spot as the meeting chair, "Now if you lot are finished messing around, we got work to do."

Later that evening, as the sun started to set, the Gods and Goddesses began filing out. Hestia remained in her seat, looking over the list of Aliases that she had written down. Overall, it could've been worse. There were definitely a few that made the Goddess frown, but such was life. She made her way home, Hephaistos beside her.

"You know, you don't have to walk me home."

The Goddess of the forge gave her the side-eye, "Yes, I do. What's to stop Freya from offing you right here and now?"

"And what? You're going to stop her top-tier adventurers?" replied Hestia. When she saw the look of pain on her dear friend's face, she immediately regretted talking.

"No, but I'll stand in the way if I have to," answered Hephaistos. That made Hestia stop walking. She placed her hands on her hips and stared down the Goddess of the forge.

"No way, I won't allow it."

"You think you can stop me?" replied Hephaistos, who also stopped walking.

"I can try!"

They stared each other down. The first one to look away was Hephaistos, "What would I do without my best friend?"

Hestia ran up to hug her, burying her face in her companion's stomach. Her tiny arms wrapped around Hephaistos's waist, "I don't plan on going anywhere soon."

"Besides, you have us to keep you safe," came a new voice.

Tsubaki hopped down from the rooftops, and other high smiths joined her.

"No way were we going to let you two walk around alone," said Tsubaki, "The only reason that Hestia's kids aren't here is because they're busy planning their expedition."

She took up a position at the front, the other high smiths going to the sides, "Now come along. We gotta get you two home."

The group walked home in silence. At the door, Hestia and Hephaistos shared one last hug before they split. Hestia invited her inside to talk to Welf, but the Goddess refused, her ears turning a particular shade of red.

Once inside, Hestia walked into the lounge area to find her Familia still hard at work. They were working so hard that they didn't notice her return. She watched them and smiled. The first one to notice her was Bell.

"Goddess, you're home!"

He jumped up from his seat. Then the rest of the Familia took notice and greeted her. After saying hello, the first one to ask the big question was Otohime.

"So, what are our aliases?"

"Oh…well…Ummm," replied Hestia.

"That bad?" asked Welf.

"No! Some of them are actually pretty good!"

Hestia's face was mixed, but she did seem excited about what was on the paper. The truth was that the names had a range of descriptions.

"Starting with Haruhime! Drum roll, please!" cried Hestia. Her response was silence. The Goddess pouted at her Familia, "I think you all forgot that I am the Goddess here! I have the paper and the power!" Her Familia groaned, "Now let's try that again! Drum roll, please!"

What followed was a half-assed drum roll with varying degrees of enthusiasm.

"For Haruhime, her name is…Enchantenko!"

"Ooohhhhh," said the people from the Far East. Meanwhile, the other members gave each other looks of confusion.

"A tenko is a mythical fox beast," explained Mikoto, "It is quite literally a golden nine-tailed fox!" The girl was smiling, "It is quite an honourable creature to be named off of! And the use of enchanting must be for her magic…"

"Yeah… that's why she's called Enchantenko…" replied Hestia, who was rubbing the back of her neck.

Lily narrowed her eyes, "They called her enchanting because of her looks, didn't they?"

Hestia looked down, "Yes…but I swear it was the best one! We can just say it's part of her magic! Who would know the difference?"

Haruhime still seemed pleased, though; she had brought her hand over her heart, "Still though, for one as lowly I, such a name is truly delightful!"

Then the renard smiled, and everyone's hearts stopped. The fox princess's noble beauty was too much.

"It is a wonderful name, isn't it, Sir Bell?" asked Mikoto.

Bell looked over at Haruhime and blushed, "Yes, it is quite a wonderful name…"

That made Haruhime smile and blush as she looked at the ground.

"The next name, please!" shouted Lily, breaking the two out of their longing stare. Hestia nodded vigorously in agreement, moving to the next name.

"Oh, this one is boring…Welf is still Ignis: The Ever-Burning," continued Hestia, not bothering with the drum-roll.

"Boring," declared Elwin. Everyone in the Familia already knew the story behind that name, and while they found it funny, it had gotten old.

"Ahhh, but there is a twist!" replied Hestia, remembering a crucial moment, "It was Hephaistos that wanted to keep the name!"

"Ooooohhhh! Juicy!" said Otohime.

Welf rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, yeah, get it all out now."

After a sufficient amount of teasing, the rest of the Familia calmed down.

"Next up is Liliruca Arde!" declared Hestia, "Little Miss Supporter's name is…"

Before the drum roll, Lily rolled her eyes, "Lily's alias is 'the Dauntless.' Lily already knows this from Mister Finn."

"Ohhh, so that's why Loki was so insistent…"

At the meeting, Loki had been quite vocal about Lily's alias. When the other Gods and Goddesses started throwing around their asinine suggestions, Loki quickly shut them all down.

"Yes, Lily had arranged for this name with Mister Finn's approval," now it was Lily's turn to blush, "Lily wishes to take part in Mister Finn's dream to be the hope of the Prum's. Lily has decided to become the Braver's rival…the Dauntless…"

"That's incredible!" declared Otohime, "I think it's awesome!"

Ryuu nodded, "A commendable goal; we will be here to help."

"Awww, Little Bit! Look at you trying to be a hero!" said Welf, ruffling the prum's hair. For once, she allowed it.

"I think that you'll be great, Lily," finished Bell.

The compliments, especially Bell's, were too much for the little prum. Her usual snarky demeanour devolved into an embarrassed mess. Hestia took pity on her and moved to the next person on the list.

"Ahhh! Time for Elwin's name!" began Hestia.

The half-elf rolled his eyes, ready for the worst. He could only imagine what kind of alias he was given. Would it be based on his half-elf heritage? Or would it be based on his bastard status? Or, and this was the most likely option, would it be some horrible mixture of both?

"And he is… 'Galilei, the Stargazer!'"

Wait, what? That name was neither insulting nor pathetic! What the hell?

Elwin narrowed his eyes, "Are you sure about that? Surely it must be different…something derogatory?"

Hestia frowned, "No, why? Do you want it to be insulting?"

The half-elf shrugged, "I have grown accustomed to such things."

"You live one depressing life, you know that, right?" replied Welf.

"Haven't we all?"

There was a moment of agonizing silence.

"OK! Moving on before the mood is totally ruined!" cried out Hestia, "Next up is our daring level jumper, Mikoto!"

There were some appreciative clapping and hollering then. Haruhime held her childhood friend close in anticipation, and even the drum roll was more enthusiastic this time.

"Mikoto's alias is…Black Crow!"

That name caught everyone by surprise, primarily because of how normal it was—quite the lucky pull for a girl who had once been called Eternal Shadow. Ryuu was smiling, though.

Mikoto tilted her head, "Why that name? Did the deities provide an explanation?"

Hestia nodded, "Apparently, it was the name of some powerful hitmen. Fits with this theme of violence, I guess."

"You're talking about Chloe and Lunoire; they were known as Black Cat and Black Fist," finished Ryuu, "Although they were not officially given aliases; those were the names that they went by for business. I am sure they will be happy to hear that you share a similar epitaph."

The thought made Mikoto smile, "I hope to live up to their honourable expectations."

Ryuu snorted, "Honor? From those two?"

"Yeah, yeah, finish talking later! I want to hear the rest of them!" said Welf.

Everyone focused back on Hestia, who was doing her best to hide behind the sheet of paper.

"Goddess Hestia, what's the matter?" asked Bell.

In response, Hestia looked the last four Familia members in the eyes as she spoke, "I swear, I did everything I could about these ones. None of them was my idea."

When she got confused nods in return, the Goddess made a little 'ahem' sound before she started speaking.

"So, Urashima got the alias, 'Living Weapon,'" began Hestia.

"That's so rude!" decreed Otohime. Her face was pinched in frustration.

Urashima laid a metallic hand on her shoulder, "It is to be expected. What else would they name me after, my good looks?"

Otohime gave him the stink eye, "Your first time trying to be funny, and that's what you go with?"

"I'm plenty funny! Right, you guys?" Ura looked to his Familia for help. When they didn't respond, he turned to Bell, "Surely you think I'm funny, Captain?"

Even the usually kind Bell couldn't look him in the eye.

"Unbelievable…" muttered Urashima. He looked up to Hestia, "Alright, what about Otohime?"

Hestia looked even more frustrated. A puff of air escaped her nose, "This one's my least favourite personally…the denatus settled on, 'The Dragon Princess.'"

"That's disgusting," responded Urashima, face contorted in anger.

Otohime placed a hand on his thigh, "It's also not wrong," she shrugged, "For now, even if I don't like it, that is what I am. Now, I will work to change it."

She finished her statement with a perfunctory nod.

Hestia gave an apologetic smile, "Still though I wish I could've gotten you a better one."

Otohime waved her off and gave a grin, "Nonsense, besides, it has its own kind of charm, no? Makes me sound like a badass, like the Sword Princess!"

Ryuu smiled, "It does; it is quite the strong name. I think it suits you."

"Well, I'm happy to hear you say so, Ryuu!" added Hestia.

Now Ryuu frowned, "What are they calling me?"

Hestia coughed, "Well…there was quite a big push to call you… 'The Faerie Princess.'"

"A big push, by who?" asked Ryuu, eyes narrowed. This sounded like a prank.

Hestia looked at the floor, "Freya chose it. She insisted over and over that you be called that."

"Why would Syr push for me to have this name specifically?"

Ryuu's question was met with silence. Everyone was staring at her.

"What did I say?"

Mikoto was the first to respond, "Lady Ryuu…you said that Syr was pushing for you to get that name."

Ryuu shook her head, "No, I didn't, I said Freya…I meant Freya!"

"Sorry Ryuu, but you said Syr," replied Elwin.

"Well, that's her fault for being so insistent! She's always been like that, butting in and teasing me!"

Ryuu kept getting more worked up. The more she spoke, the louder her voice got. She went on and on about how Syr was always getting into people's business and how she found it funny to mess with people.

Eventually, Bell had to grab a shoulder, "Ryuu, do you want to take a break?"

The sudden human contact jilted Ryuu out of her thoughts. She shook her head, "No, I'll be ok. Let us hear Bell's name, and then be done with it."

No one actually thought she was ok, but they kept going anyway.

"Right, so the last one is Bell…and it was decided that he would be named, 'March Hare,'" finished Hestia.

Most people frowned because they didn't quite get it. Bell and Haruhime did, though; the renard shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Goddess Hestia would that name be in reference to the Tale of Alice from Wonderland?" she asked.

Hestia nodded, "The very same. If I remember correctly, the March Hare is a character, right? A bit of a weird one?"

Bell nodded, "The March Hare was seen as crazy, and their behaviour led to the phrase, 'Mad as a March Hare,' but," and then Bell frowned, "there was another part to the story…"

Haruhime started talking when Bell couldn't, "The March Hare was also known for being…." The young woman blushed, "quite active in bed."

Hestia sighed again, "Yeah, that sounds about right. Most of the Gods agreed that Bell was, in fact, 'as mad as the March Hare' for turning down Lady Freya."

Otohime pulled a face, "That's the most despicable thing I've ever heard!"

There were nods of agreement from everyone in the room. Again, Hestia shook her head, "There wasn't much to be done, unfortunately. We all tried, but even Loki couldn't stop it. Mostly because Freya liked the name too."

Bell's face was much too distraught. Because of that, Welf clasped him on the shoulder, "Well, no matter how he got it, that's his alias. And you know what that means?" asked the smith. At everyone's blank faces, he smiled from ear to ear, "Time to party! Let's go get drunk!"

Some hours later, Hestia Familia was at the Hostess of Fertility. Anything resembling a lousy mood had disappeared after a couple rounds of the bar's famous ale. Now they were all dancing and partying. Elwin had stolen Dixen's lute, who was still working there to shave off the new debt he had accumulated. Meanwhile, the half-elf was playing through a long list of drinking songs. Inside, quite a large number of people were having a great time.

On their way to the bar, Hestia sent Mikoto to get Takemikazuchi Familia and Miach Familia. This large gathering meant that it was quite the impromptu party. Not that Mamma Mia cared; her guests were having the right kind of fun and were buying a quite frankly absurd number of drinks. On one of the tables, Otohime had pulled Urashima into a dance. The two were the center of attention, everyone drunkenly cheering them on as they spun and twirled.

In a shadowed corner, the three Gods were intoxicated and praising their children.

"My Bell! He is the absolute cutest!" screamed Hestia as she banged her fist onto the table.

"Maybe so, but no one is as kind as Naza!" replied Miach, still calm but most certainly inebriated.

"Hey! Don't forget Ouka! There's not a tougher adventurer out there in the world!" decreed Takemikazuchi, arms folded across his chest.

Watching over them was a disgruntled trio of a prum, a chienthrope, and a large man from the Far East. The three had taken it upon themselves to be the official godly caretakers tonight. Lily didn't want to, but everyone else in her Familia was already too drunk to care. Even her Captain was intoxicated, which meant that Orario got to see for the first time, drunk Bell Cranel…

"I'm so sorry, Syr!" screamed Bell.

Three drinks in, and he had latched onto Helun, quickly confusing her for her original counterpart. Not that Helun minded; she was, in fact, quite content to let Bell hold onto her. Mia had decided that Helun wouldn't get much work done with the boy in his current state. So, she had sat on a bench and placed Bell's head in her lap; she was currently running her hands through his hair.

"It's quite alright, Bell, don't you worry. I'll take care of you, ok?" said Helun.

Head buried in her thighs, Helun felt Bell shake his head. He lifted it to declare, "No! I'm supposed to protect you! You're a girl, which means I have to save you, Syr!"

Helun blinked, "You have to save Syr?"

Drunk Bell nodded, "That's right! Syr is sad, which means I have to save her!"

The boy tried to push himself up, but his hands slipped on the wet bench. With a loud smack sound, his face planted back into Helun's thighs.

"There there," responded Helun, patting his head, "I'm sure you'll be able to save her, Bell! You saved me, didn't you?"

This time, Bell has successfully pushed himself up, still shaking his head. With a frown on his face, he said, "It's never enough, though. I have to keep going and save everyone!"

Despite his intoxicated state, the words Bell spoke were severe. There was an intensity in his eyes that sent a shiver down Helun's spine. She squirmed in her seat, her heart thumping very loudly in her chest.

"Oh… you're going to save everyone? Including me?" asked Helun.

Bell nodded, "For sure!" in a burst of drunken confidence, Bell grabbed Helun's hands, "You always look so sad, Syr, which means I have to save you and cheer you up!"

"Eh!" Helun started stumbling over her words, "Oh, well, eh that means, I am so grateful…"

Welf sat with Ryuu, Daphne and Cassandra in another part of the bar, recounting tales of glory.

"There were twenty monsters out there!" he began.

"There were ten," corrected Ryuu.

"Each one as strong a monster from the deep floors!"

"I'd place them on the same strength as a goblin from floor five."

"It took all my courage, wit, and bravery to defeat them!"

"He tripped on a rock and fell on his face."

Welf glared at the elf, "I'm the one telling the story!"

Ryuu narrowed her eyes, her cheeks a rosy pink, "Then stop lying! A liar cannot follow the path of justice!"

From nearby, Chloe, who was refilling their drinks, rolled her eyes, "Oh boy, here we go againyan."

"The way of justice does not include lies! Justice must come around!" began Ryuu, stumbling to her feet. Usually, she was not one to drink, but her Familia had been quite insistent that she have at least one drink. Then, one turned to three, and so on and so forth.

"We must strive to stay forward on the path of righteousness! As the inheritor of the will of Lady Astrea, bearer of justice incarnate!" Ryuu continued her speech, raising a finger to the air, "I will-"

Something odd happened then, and Ryuu clutched her mouth. She ran out to the back and emptied her stomach. Even though she bore the Abnormal Resistance developmental ability, a combination of Mama Mia's strong adventurer's ale and her own lack of drinking experience drove her to vomit. Thankfully, her will was strong, and she made it all the way outside to a bucket before her sickness overtook her.

Daphne, Cassandra, and Welf watched her go. Then the level four member of Miach Familia glanced at the smith, "Shouldn't you be taking care of her?"

Welf shrugged, "Nahhh! She'll be fine! Just doing some training is all!" Welf looked at his full cup, "Speaking of which."

He continued to drink the night away.

The last couple of Hestia Familia were currently engaged in a competition with their childhood friends.

"The game is quite simple," began Haruhime, a single valis in her hand. In the middle of a table was an empty mug. The renard's tail swished behind her, "We take turns bouncing this coin! Whoever manages to put the coin in the middle cup gets to choose another person. That person must drink from their cup and then order a new one!"

The collection of Far Eastern adventurers were already quite a few glasses in. Which was when Mikoto and Haruhime suggested the game they had learned on their travels.

The bouncing was more complicated than anticipated, as the adventurers' enhanced strength often meant that the coin got lodged in the table. The worst was Mikoto, who still had not totally accommodated to her double level up. The third time she got a coin stuck in the table, Haruhime broke into a fit of giggles.

"Haruhime! Why are you laughing at me?" asked Mikoto, too drunk to remember honorifics.

"Your face is just too adorable, Mikoto," replied Haruhime, trying to hide her giggles behind her hand.

Mikoto blushed, her face indignant, "I am not adorable! I am a formidable second-class warrior!"

In response, Haruhime patted her head, "And you are as acute as a button!"

At Mikoto's frown, the renard giggled again. Then she looked around the table, "Oh dear, it seems that our glasses are empty! Shall I get some refills?"

Haruhime then collected the empty mugs. As she sauntered over to the bar, Mikoto's eyes followed her swaying hips. After watching her childhood friend stare for an uncomfortable amount of time, Chigusa coughed. Mikoto whirled to look over, her braid smacking another adventurer in the face.

"Yes, Chigusa?"

"Umm, Miss Mikoto, I didn't know that you abandoned your pursuit of Lord Takemikazuchi," continued the trim level three.

Mikoto's head tilted, "What do you mean?"

Unlike before, when Mikoto would be reduced to a stuttering, lovestruck little girl every time her crush was brought up, the samurai's face was serious.

Chigusa looked over at Haruhime, who was talking with Anya. Mikoto joined her. When she sighted the fox girl, her face relaxed, and a smile tugged at her cheeks. Chigusa, and the other Takemikazuchi Familia members, all made small noises of understanding. Deciding that this was none of their business, they turned back to their drinks.

Half an hour later, the party was still going. The night was more fun than any could remember, and it was about to become even more interesting. As it just so happened, Loki Familia also decided that it was time for a celebration. While none of their adventurers had won in battle, they had fought hard and fought well. For Loki, that was more than enough reason to get totally hammered.

They arrived expecting to be the life of the party. Unfortunately, that role had already been taken. The second the executives stepped in, the vice-captain was practically assaulted.

"Big Sis! You came," cried Elwin. He turned to Gareth, "Did you know that this is my big sister? She's the coolest, most awesome person I know!" The half-elf turned back to the high-elf and gave her a big kiss on the cheek, "We've only known each other for a week, but I want you to know, I love you, sis!"

Riveria would deny it till the day she died, but she almost cried at that moment. After that emotional exchange, Elwin hoisted himself onto Lefiya, and Loki Familia integrated into the party. The Goddess joined her fellow deities, Finn following. It took all of ten seconds for Ais to spot Bell, whose head was still buried in Helun's lap. Before she could deal with that, though, she had to manage the bodyguard glaring at her. Next to him stood Otohime, who Ais had almost…ohhh, that was why he was glaring…

Otohime, who had stopped dancing only a couple minutes ago, looked between the two adventurers. Then she waved a polite goodbye to the Sword Princess, a strained smile on her face, before pulling Urashima away in the opposite direction. Ais frowned; she had to remember to apologize…she almost…

As Ais tried to ignore the other disparaging look she received from Lily, she hoped to have time to resolve her issues with Hestia Familia later, when everyone was sober. She instead walked up to Bell and Helun. At the sound of her footsteps, Bell's head lifted. When he spotted her, his face lit up in a huge grin. He pushed himself up.

"Ais! You're here!" said Bell, "Yay!"

He almost fell forward then, his arms wrapping around her waist. The action took Ais by surprise, and she did not know how to proceed. Loki had done this to her before, but that was Loki. This was Bell, and having him wrap his arms around her so tightly was definitely a nice feeling…

"Are you ok, Bell?" asked the Sword Princess.

Face in her stomach, Bell nodded. He looked up, "I was hoping you would show up. I wanted to tell you something, Ais."

"Yes?"

"I'm going to save you, Ais."

That one slurred sentence took Ais's breath away. She felt her face heat, and her heart started to speed up. She slowly ran her fingers through Bell's hair. A face of contentment settled on Bell and Ais asserted her spot as Bell's default lap pillow. Helun didn't seem to like this development, but there was no way she would pick a fight with the Sword Princess. She left the two of them alone, which made Ais very happy. Any time someone started to walk towards the two, she would stare at them until they left—all except one righteous elf, that is.

"Ais Wallenstein!" cried Ryuu, swaying forward. Even though her stomach had been emptied, the effects of the alcohol lingered.

"Hands off, my Captain!"

Ais pouted, "Why?"

"Because I have to protect his chastity!"

From his spot in Ais's lap, Bell shook his head, "No, if Ryuu gets to me again! She'll kiss me again! And she won't remember!"

That got Ais's attention. She looked between Captain and Vice-Captain and felt a strange clawing emotion in her stomach. Bell had kissed this woman?

Thankfully, that was when Welf intervened. Still relatively sober, the high smith slowly guided Ryuu away.

"But I saw Bell with the Sword Princess!" declared Ryuu.

Welf shook his head, "No way! He's actually over at the table."

The smith nodded at Ais as he left.

At the same moment, another elf was dealing with a half-elf.

"Lefiya, have I ever told you how beautiful you look?"

The first time he had said this, it had stolen Lefiya's breath away. Now though…

"Yes, Elwin, you have. In fact, you've said it twelve times now," she replied.

"Did I say that it was because of your gorgeous eyes?"

Lefiya nodded.

"What about your hair that shimmers in the light?"

Lefiya rolled her eyes, "Yes, you did."

"What about your thighs?"

Lefiya almost nodded, then his words entered her brain.

"Ehhh?!"

"Your thighs," began Elwin, "Are absolutely exquisite."

He patted them for emphasis.

"Please! Keep your hands away!" replied Lefiya, who shuffled back. It's not that she hated the feeling…but…

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" cried Elwin, "You're just so nice! And pretty! And you were so kind!"

Lefiya frowned, "What do you mean?"

Elwin looked up, a dopey grin on his face, "All those other elves only started being nice because I was Riveria's little brother. You were kind from the start! You're so kind!"

After that proclamation, Elwin seemed to slump forward. He had been distracted by a stain on the table.

Lefiya looked to the heavens. Why does she always have to fall for the strangest people?

"Lefiya, you're sad now?" asked Elwin.

"Huh?"

"You looked up, and then you started frowning…are you ok? Did someone hurt you?"

Lefiya shook her head, a melancholic smile on her face, "No, I was just thinking of someone else."

"Then they are my rival?"

Again, Lefiya shook her head, "No, they're not."

She brought her a hand up to cup his cheek, forgetting that people were watching.

"You are the only person I'm interested in right now, Elwin Ruffrot Lojs Alf," said the elf. Elwin leaned into her touch.

Then he asked, "What about Ais?"

"What do you mean?"

"Some of the others said I should worry because you had a crush on the Sword Princess."

Lefiya stopped and thought. While it was true that she had once found Ais Wallenstein…desirable, but everything that happened with Filvis made her reconsider. She had to stop and think about who she was and who she wanted to spend her life with. After watching Ais fall into despair over Bell Cranel leaving the city, Lefiya realized that the blonde swordswoman was not the person for her. Apparently, a green-haired half-elf could be, though.

"There is nothing for you to worry about," said Lefiya, "Right now, I am only interested in you."

Elwin smiled, "Good, because I'm interested in you too."

Apparently, Elwin decided that was the end of the conversation. His eyes closed, and he fell forward. Lefiya caught him, and his head nestled on her chest. She sighed but let him be. She would take him home when she needed to. For now, though, she'd enjoy herself.

While these people experienced joy, deep in the dungeon, a humanoid monster walked down a tunnel. She remembered pain and dazzling lights. A face loomed over her, and then it was dark. She swore to herself she would remember that face. That face was important, and she would cut down anything for her goal of discovery.

While she walked, another monster joined her. It spoke of an upcoming expedition. Apparently, their allies on the surface demanded that these adventurers be destroyed. All except one that is. One adventurer, who had hair the colour of snow, was to be captured and held hostage. Regarding the others, she could do as she wished. Perhaps she would torture them about the lights and the faces she saw in her dreams.

The humanoid monster let these possibilities wash over her. She would do as her Captain declared and catch this snowy adventurer. Afterwards, she would reach her goal and find the face that looked down on her. She would go to the surface and see the twinkling lights.

And up in Babel, the Goddess of Beauty watched on. Her original plan had not gone quite as she wanted. The spirit of her Odr was still tainted. No matter, though, there was still so much more to be done. And now that he knew what was happening underground, her little hero was going to save them. He would expose himself to the world, and she would be there right alongside him. She was going to cleanse his spirit of guilt. There was no room for indecision, no place for fear. She would help him, just like she had done with that minotaur. She was going to remove his guilt by showing him the truth. She would turn his guilt into righteous anger, and he would be cleansed. Her Odr would be perfect…he had to be…otherwise, what else would she do?

Chapter Text

He remembered the meeting clearly. He was called by his Goddess, and Lady Hecate told him that they would be going for a trip to the edge of the city. The group included him, his mother, Lady Hecate, and the Familia Captain, Morgana. At the edge of Carien, they went into a dingy inn. Morgana spoke to the innkeeper, who directed them upstairs.

Mama led him to a room at the end of the hallway and knocked three times. When the door opened, an elf was standing in the doorframe. The lanky body looked over them, his eyes focusing on the littlest member. He crouched down as if to say hello. Then he studied the little boy, paying extra attention to his bright green hair.

Elwin was unbelievably confused at that moment. While his hair did seem to get him some attention, it was always in a passing way. People wanted to touch and feel it, not stare and study. Eventually, the elf in front of him stood back up and returned to the room. When he slammed the door in their faces, Morgana rolled her eyes. Elwin knew that look. Nothing ever good came from Morgana having that look.

He watched in anticipation as Morgana walked up to the door, as casual as could be, and flicked it with her finger. The response was that the wooden door went flying off its hinges. Morgana then strolled inside, speaking as she went.

"Come to me, blade of my lover. Give me the strength to protect and destroy. I summon thee, blade of the King: Excalibur," chanted the Captain of Hecate Familia. In response, her magic lit up, and a tremendous ethereal blade phased into existence.

Morgana swung this great blade in a slow arc, using it to deflect the arrows and magic that had been aimed at where they entered. Lady Hecate and Elwin's Mama followed the Captain inside, so he did too. He wasn't going to be scared! Besides, all the men back at the Familia home said it was the guy's duty to protect girls!

"Really now, is that any way to treat the people that you invited?" asked Lady Hecate. Her white toga dress cascaded to the floor, and her golden wrist bangles jingled as she swung her arms.

Trusting in her Captain to keep her safe, the Goddess strutted to the middle of the room, as proud as a peacock. She placed her hands on her hips and asked, "Alright, which one of you is the deadbeat asshole?"

The temperature in the room dropped as the assembled elven guards all struggled to contain their rage. Their icy glares would have killed any normal person. Alas, these were members of Hecate Familia; Being crazy was what they did best.

"Well?" asked Morgana, "Lady Hecate asked a question."

While the inn was at the edge of town, it was still on the higher end of classiness. This meant that there were a series of rooms connected together. From one of the side rooms, out strode a man that even little Elwin knew had to be someone incredibly important. The stranger's posture was like that of Hecate and the other Deities Elwin had seen around the Familia home and halls. The thing that most caught Elwin's eye, though, was that this man had jade green hair.

As if pulled by a divine force, Elwin stepped forward and asked, "Papa?"

At the word, the regal stranger sneered. His face twisted into a smirk as he replied, "Yes, I suppose I would be your…Papa."

The last word had been spat out in disgust.

"Watch your words, elf-boy," commented Morgana, her blade resting on her shoulder.

At that, the other elves in the room turned their bows and staves on her. The Captain of Hecate Familia didn't care, though. She was watching her fellow Familia members. Her voice was confident, but her eyes seemed worried; they darted between Elwin and his mother.

"And you will watch your tone," growled out the strange elf man, "I am Larfal Ljos Alf, king of the high elves, do you understand?"

"I am so sorry about her, Larfal," came the timid reply of Elwin's mother, Lira. She had straight brown hair, a gentle face, and piercing blue eyes.

"You will address me as Your Grace, woman," was Larfal's reply.

At Lira's shocked face, Elwin frowned. No one made Mama cry! He made to step forward and speak, but Lira pulled him back. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him close. Her whole body was shaking.

"Well then," said Hecate, her voice like a melody, "What is it that you wanted King Larfal?"

Those who knew Hecate would understand the mocking tone that her voice had taken. However, the proud and arrogant elves just smiled.

"The boy must go into hiding. He is to hide his identity and renounce all claims to royalty," replied Larfal.

"Renouncing royalty is easy enough, but hiding his identity? How easy do you think that'll be? Most of Hecate Familia already knows, along with the city," said Morgana, "What's the point in trying to hide it?"

Larfal narrowed his eyes at Elwin, "What I did was a mistake. While I will be merciful and grant the child life, I will not let him parade his bastard status."

"He's your son Larfal!" screamed Lira, "He's not a mistake; he's your son!"

"That's King Larfal, wench," said an elf, "Speak like that again, and we will be forced to remove your tongue."

"You can try," replied Morgana, stepping in front of her Familia, "Let me make this clear to all of you. I am Morgana Le Fey, Captain of Hecate Familia. Outside the Dungeon City, I am the strongest mage in the world. Even then, the only one I know to be stronger than I is your daughter, King Larfal. Make a move towards my Familia, and that same daughter will become an orphan. This, I promise."

Her voice was steel, and her eyes were blazing. She gave off the aura of a killer. The elf guards stepped back in fear.

"Remember, you have no jurisdiction here, and you have no falna to back up your demands," said Hecate, "You have no power in these negotiations. You understand this, yes?"

Larfal frowned, "Now listen, you will do as I say, or I will put out a bounty to all elves in this world. And they will listen because I am King!"

Morgana snorted, "You're a pathetic little man, is what you are. No man who has to say he is a king is worthy of the title. Now tell your little followers to stand down. Their threatening behaviour is annoying me."

Larfal opened his mouth to rebut, but it was Hecate who spoke next.

Hecate shook her head, "Honestly, you children and your behaviour. It is all so strange to me. That said, we will agree to your terms. The boy renounces his claim to royalty and will henceforth hide his identity," Hecate smiled, "As long as he is part of MY Familia, this will be so."

The groups split then. The elves made to return home, and Hecate Familia went back to their headquarters. Elwin grew up with a leather cap on his head and in a house full of love from his mother and Familia. Flashforward and members of Hestia Familia arrived from the Dungeon City. Then, Elwin left Hecate Familia, and the deal was null and void.

Elwin remembered these events and so many others. They became what he focused on, sitting crossed-legged in the courtyard of the Twilight Manor.

"These memories will be painful, but if you can work through them and find a way to balance them, your mind will clear," said Riveria, standing behind him, "I know that they hurt," she squeezed his shoulder, "Please, try to work through them. From pain, we can find strength." Riveria paced around the courtyard, "This is how mages train. We meditate to strengthen our minds and find our inner balance."

In the lead up to the expedition, she had formally begun his training. She had actually been very insistent about it. Apparently, he wasn't allowed to die since they had only just met. At first, Elwin was excited. Not only was he getting to spend time with his sister, but he was going to be trained by THE Nine Hells, the greatest mage in Orario, and probably the world. Unfortunately, the reality was not what he had been expecting.

The studying was constant; from sunup to sundown, he would meditate, read old books, and go over magical theory. This wasn't bad training, per se; it was just incredibly different from what he used to do. As a member of Hecate Familia, Morgana had made him practice sparring for days. Not only combat training but magical duels versus his fellow Familia members. It was a blended approach to training back home. Since they only had weak aboveground monsters, sparring between mages was essential for growth.

Apparently, remembering how he used to train was the wrong way to meditate because he was smacked over the head by Riveria and her staff. As he grabbed the back of his head in pain, tinkling laughter rang out behind him. He turned to glare at his accomplice.

For whatever strange reason, Otohime had invited herself along to the training today. It had been a day since the night of drinking, and now that the Princess was among the people, she had decided that the next best step was to visit Loki Familia. Her visit had been met by the regular members' apprehension, but Finn had nodded and given her permission to wait. For what, only Otohime and Finn seemed to know.

"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" asked Elwin for the tenth time.

Otohime pursed her lips and then shook her head, "Not yet. Apparently, I have a couple more hours of waiting to do."

Riveria smacked him over the head again, "Stop getting so distracted!"

Elwin pointed at Otohime, "Why don't you tell her that?"

Riveria frowned but looked amused, "She's not the one getting trained. Now, get backed to meditation. You must conquer your insecurities," at Elwin's huff of indignation, Riveria's eyes narrowed, "Oh, and do you have a different idea?"

Elwin took the opportunity, hoping to his feet in excitement, "Yes! Let me duel! Find me a training partner!"

There was only one week till the expedition began. Hestia Familia had to time their departure just right so that both Goliath and Amphisbaena would be active and able for a takedown. They also had to spend time aboveground investigating what this new mission from the Guild was. The only details they had so far were that there was a disturbance to investigate on the thirtieth floor and that the new Xenos faction might be involved. So, Ryuu and some of the others were spending time hunting down rumours. Not the commander, though. Lili was at the Twilight Manor today. She was busy spending time training with the Braver. Elwin had been hoping to spot Lefiya, but apparently, she had her own studying to do in the library. When Elwin asked if they could train together, Riveria replied that they had no time for flirting. So, they trained separately.

"And who exactly would you be training with?" asked Riveria.

"I don't know! There must some level three mage that I can spar with! Aren't you lot supposed to be the strongest Familia in the city?" responded Elwin.

"I'll train with Lord Elwin!"

Alicia came running out, apparently having hidden under a doorway. She had prepared for this, apparently, because she already had her training equipment at the ready.

When she pulled up to the siblings, she flashed a smile, "If that would be ok with you, Lady Riveria?"

"Well…that is…I don't mind," replied Riveria, obviously feeling awkward. Wasn't this a faux-pas since Lefiya wasn't around?

"Aren't you a level four, though?" asked Otohime.

Alicia fluttered her eyes, "But Lord Elwin is so strong! I'm sure that with his skill and talent, it'll be a fair match-up!"

"I'm game if she is?" responded Elwin, totally oblivious.

Riveria sighed but nodded. She stepped back to give the two young folk some room.

Alicia's face lit up, "Well, then, shall we?" She had a coy smile, "Promise you won't be too rough with me?"

"But then, how would we train?" asked Elwin.

From her spot on the side, Otohime shook her head, "If my Ura was as dense as you are…."

Elwin did not hear that, though. He was too busy preparing for the fight to listen. He didn't know what kind of magic Alicia used, but he knew that she was a level four mage that could chant concurrently. Not to mention that his current spells weren't the usual kind of combat magic…

Standing at opposite ends of the garden, with Riveria in the middle, the two-faced off. Riveria glanced back and forth before nodding.

"No lasting injuries, no aiming for vital areas, and no holding grudges," said Riveria; she raised her hand. After a moment of silence, she dropped it.

Elwin moved first, charging forward, "Give me strength, charging Bull. Make me the one who charges forward to protect my allies. I summon thee: Golden Bull, Datauri!"

His magic flared, and a red glow overcame Elwin's body. When he reached Alicia, his left hook caught her unaware in the shoulder. She was too busy staring at Elwin's face to notice his fist, and she went flying backwards.

Riveria cocked an eyebrow, and Otohime explained, "His spell Datauri grants him the Fist Fighter development ability and grants him a boost to his strength and endurance. Turns him into a front-line fighter."

She stood to the side, watching the two go at it. Whenever Alicia started to chant, Elwin restarted his assault, throwing the elf off her game. Alicia was knocked off her feet with quick jabs to her stomach and a hook to one of her legs. The elf girl fell face-first to the dirt, and Elwin restrained her arms.

"That was almost…too easy?" commented Elwin as he stood up.

Alicia had barely struggled in the fight, aiming to fall over. Now, she squirmed in ecstatic silence as Elwin pinned her to the ground.

"What in the world is going on?"

Finally done with her training, Lefiya came to see how Elwin was doing. The little elf came running outside to the sight of Elwin kneeling over Alicia's body. Alicia flashed a victorious grin, "Just some light sparring. Why, is there something wrong, Lefiya?"

Lefiya started stammering, unable to comprehend. The only problem was that as soon as he saw Lefiya, Elwin popped up, a massive smile on his face. The weight on Alicia's body vanished, and Elwin was soon bounding over the grass like an idiot.

"Lefiya! Did you finish studying? Do you want to spar, or maybe it's time to grab some lunch?" asked Elwin, looking to Riveria.

As Alicia looked confused, Riveria tried to surpass her laughter. The royal elf nodded and said, "Yes, I believe now is the perfect time for a break."

Alicia made to get up and forcefully join the happy couple, and interrupt their apparent attempt at a date, but Otohime got in her way.

The former Princess had a sickly smile as she said, "Excuse me, Miss Alicia, I couldn't help but notice that you need some help with your hand-to-hand combat. Perhaps I could be of assistance?"

Alicia opened her mouth to refuse, but then her leader stepped forward.

Riveria nodded along, "Yes, I think that could be useful."

The high-elf strode forward, staff in hand, "Alicia, I didn't think that you needed that much work. Usually, you are much more competent than that. Are you perhaps having a bad day?"

Alicia looked between the two, her face going red from guilt, "I…perhaps I could use some assistance?"

Meanwhile, Lefiya and Elwin were making their way to the Loki Familia dining hall. They grabbed lunch, accidentally reaching for the same cookie at one point, and sat down across from each other.

"So, did you enjoy sparring with Alicia?" asked Lefiya, trying to be inconspicuous.

Elwin's nose scrunched, "Honestly? I expected more. It was like she was trying to lose, really kind of disgraceful. She's not even close to you."

"What do you mean?" asked Lefiya.

"I mean, I'd prefer to spar with someone who'd fight back, you know? Someone with some energy."

Lefiya felt extremely pleased at that moment.

"How's your prep for the expedition going?" asked Elwin.

Lefiya pondered the question for a second, "I believe it is going well. We're supposed to be heading to your home for planning starting tomorrow. Apparently, your Commander wants to talk about how to use me?"

Elwin sighed, "Allow me to apologize in advance. Lili can be…intense about strategy. Really, she's just trying to make sure we all have the best chance of survival. She cares, so just make sure to keep that in mind."

Lefiya tilted her head, "Is she really that bad?"

"She can be. She might come off as insulting or aggressive, but she's just trying to acquire as much information as possible, I swear. Really, she's a good person," answered Elwin.

"Well, now you're making me nervous…."

Elwin reached out to grab a hand, "No need to worry. I'll be there if anything happens."

Lefiya looked around, hoping not to see anyone stare, "You really are quite affectionate for an elf, aren't you?"

Elwin shrugged, "Half-elf, remember? Also raised by humans," Elwin looked away, "Do you not like it?"

"No, no! I do!" responded Lefiya, "I'm just not used to it…the last person I was close to was…not one for physical contact…."

Just like the night at the bar, Elwin noticed the melancholy on Lefiya's face. He didn't want to push…but she always seemed so sad in these moments. He traced circles on the back of her hand with his thumb, trying to offer some form of comfort. The two of them promptly finished their lunch and walked back to the yard to resume their training.

They came back outside to find a crowd waiting in the yard.

"Oh no…she didn't…" muttered Elwin, "Please… don't tell me…."

Lefiya gasped, "You mean Lady Otohime?"

Elwin shook his head, "No, it's worse… she's doing that stupid dance of hers…."

Pushing their way to the front, they were met with Otohime standing in front of a pair of second-class adventurers. In her hands was the wooden pole that Finn liked to use for sparring. At some undetermined motion, the other level four's (Narvi and Cruz) sprang into an attack.

What Lefiya saw next was grace in motion. Otohime moved this way and that, her feet sliding on the ground. Her pole spun as it deflected attacks from the other adventurers. Then, she let the blade Narvi was using slide along its edge until Otohime was in kicking range. Two high kicks later, and the red-haired adventurer was sent flying.

"She seems extra strong today," commented Riveria, who had walked up to join the pair.

Elwin rolled his eyes, "It's her stupid skill: Sunshine, it gives a minor status boost when she's standing in direct sunlight."

Lefiya chuckled, "It sounds like you are quite familiar with Lady Otohime's fighting style. Have you, perhaps, lost to her before?"

Elwin turned red.

Riveria joined in on the laughter then. The three elves were so busy laughing that they didn't notice Otohime drop the pole. The former princess opened her hands and began using open palm attacks. She grabbed a punch from Cruz and twisted the arm till the dog man bent backwards in pain. Then, she threw him into the wall. Next, Otohime slid along the grass to catch another punch from behind. She pulled Narvi in close and then elbowed her in the stomach. Otohime then flipped the girl over her shoulder and into the dirt.

Left leg swinging up next, blocking a haymaker from Cruz. He grabbed her leg to throw her, except when she got close, Otohime swung her other leg up to. Then, she squeezed his head between her thighs and somersaulted forward. The resounding pull brought the large adventurer to the ground. He was down for the count.

Otohime considered her handiwork and nodded, seemingly pleased with the results. Then, she noticed the crowd that had formed and waved.

"Would anyone else like to spar?"

The collective adventurers of Loki Familia all took a step back. Otohime pouted in response.

"Just why exactly are you here again?" asked Elwin.

"I'm waiting for someone!" responded Otohime.

"What in the world are you two doing?" shouted Lili, who had come outside. The little prum was fuming, and her hands had curled into fists.

The two pointed at each other, "They started it!"

"Lili doesn't care who started it! Stop beating up our allies!" Lili narrowed her eyes, "Besides, Lili thought that Lady Otohime couldn't fight with hand-to-hand combat."

Otohime rolled her eyes, "Not with monsters! I can't do the same throws and grabs with those things!" Otohime shook her head, "Honestly, Commander, isn't it your job to know how I fight?"

Elwin also took a step back because he had just seen something truly idiotic. Lili jumped forward and pulled Otohime to the ground by her ear lobe. The level four adventurer had been caught off guard, unfortunately.

"OW OW OW OW!"

"Would Lady Otohime like to repeat herself?"

"No!"

"Would Lady Otohime like to apologize to Lili?"

"Yes! I'm sorry, Commander!"

Lili let go, "Good, now start heading home!"

Otohime shook her head, "I can't!"

"Why not?" shouted Lili.

"I'm waiting for someone!"

"Who?"

Otohime almost responded, then she spotted a figure.

"For her!" Otohime pointed out into the crowd.

Everyone turned to find Ais Wallenstein with a look of confusion on her face.

"Hello, Sword Princess!" shouted the Dragon Princess, "I have come to talk about how you almost killed me last week!"

The response was dead silence from Loki Familia. Ais seemed to have accepted her fate, and she strode forward to receive punishment.

"OI! What do you think you're doing, you raging dumbass!" said Elwin.

"Lili must agree! Now is neither the time nor place for petty revenge!"

When the two of them tried to grab the Princess, she slipped around and away from their grasping hands. She walked out to meet the Sword Princess halfway. Lefiya almost moved to defend her idol, but she found Riveria's staff blocking her path. Before she could speak, the high elf held a finger to her lips. Up in the executive's office, Finn, Loki, and Gareth all watched on.

When the two Princesses were close, Otohime raised a hand. Ais closed her eyes, ready to be punched. A moment passed, then another, and then another. Eventually, Ais opened her eyes to find Otohime's hand on her shoulder. The Far-Eastern girl smiled.

"Thank you for staying your blade!"

Now, Ais was lost, "But…I almost killed you!"

Otohime removed her hand from Ais's shoulder and made a tutting motion with her finger.

"Ohoho, but you didn't!" Otohime booped Ais on the nose, "You listened to my Captain, and you didn't cut my head off, which is good because I can't very well flirt with Ura without a pretty face now, can I?"

Elwin felt a headache start to come on, "I swear…this girl…I just can't…."

"Lili has to agree, Mister Elwin…our Princess is something else…."

Meanwhile, Ais felt that someone was being mean to her. So, the Sword Princess pouted, "I mean it, though. I almost killed you, and that's wrong."

Otohime shook her head, "No, you almost killed a monster, remember? Unless you somehow knew that I was the dragon creature?"

Ais kept pouting, "Still though…"

Otohime leaned forward, "Ahhh…so, you are still feeling tremendous guilt then? Perhaps you desire a punishment?"

Ais nodded.

"My oh my, how interesting," Otohime tapped her chin in thought, "What to do, though?" She turned to the assembled adventurers, "Any suggestions?"

At the assembled silence, Riveria stepped forward, "How about a promise to protect you and your Familia no matter what on the upcoming expedition?"

The high elf had caught on rather quickly to what Otohime was planning. Even if it seemed a little heavy-handed…

"Ahhh! A most wonderful suggestion, Lady Riveria!" decreed Otohime, nodding along like the royalty she had been. Otohime looked back at Ais, "Well then, how does that sound? To repay me for almost chopping off my head, you shall have to defend me and my Familia with all your might during this expedition!"

To cap off her words, Otohime patted the top-tier adventurer on the head.

However, Ais was completely serious when she nodded. The Sword Princess took this as a solemn vow and replied, "I swear I will."

In this one moment, Otohime had won over almost all of Loki Familia. Of course, this large Familia of adventurers had been there to hear, and in some cases, see Otohime's tragic magic. They had looked on with looks of trepidation and disgust. In this exchange, though, when she showed kindness, compassion, and forgiveness to her would-be executioner, they felt their hearts melt. Many of them were shamed for thinking so poorly of her.

Elwin and Lili watched on, looks of disbelief plastered on their faces.

"I hate how good she is at that…" said the half-elf.

Lili nodded, "It is disturbing to think that she of all people was almost crowned empress…."

They both shivered at the thought.

Otohime then looked between the battered adventurers she had sparred with, and the still perplexed Ais Wallenstein and nodded.

"Now, I must depart! For my work is finished!"

She then began to leave before Elwin shouted after her, "You didn't do anything!"

Otohime chose to ignore him, feeling as if she had actually accomplished a great deal. Lili looked to the sky and realized that it was about to start raining. She turned to Elwin.

"Lili believes it is for the best for us to head home now."

Elwin nodded and said his goodbyes to Lefiya and Riveria. He also gave Riveria a hug in front of her Familia, flaunting his close relationship as her little brother. Many Familia members, including their Goddess, were insanely jealous at Elwin's opportunity.

"Goodbye, Lord Elwin!"

At Alicia's goodbye, Elwin turned to wave. Then he waved at Lefiya.

"Bye, Lefiya! I'll miss you!"

Lefiya's heart melted, and she shot a triumphant grin at her fellow lovestruck elf. Alicia glared at Elwin's back and decided to not respond.

"I'll miss you too!" replied Lefiya.

A couple days later, and it was Loki Familia's turn to visit Hestia Familia. They had been let into the manor by Haruhime and were now waiting in the lounge area. Ais had been hoping to see Bell, but apparently, he was out shopping with Mikoto for supplies and equipment. Ais felt sad then, like the whole trip here was suddenly without meaning.

Then, Liliruca Arde walked in, papers in hand. She sat in front of the two top-tier adventurers and proceeded to make some notes in a journal. After a minute, she looked up.

"For Miss Lefiya, I already have ideas for your position in the party. You are easily the strongest mage we have, but Lili must ask, what is the nature of your skills and magic?"

Under Lili's intense stare, Lefiya started to sweat. This conversation was like when Finn used to interrogate her and prepare for their expeditions.

"Well…I can use any elf magic that I know the chant of, and I can keep one spell I chanted in reserve," began Lefiya. In response, Lili took more notes.

"And…I have skills that make my magic more powerful…offensively that is…."

Lili nodded along and then smiled at the two of them, "This is wonderful! With Miss Lefiya's powerful magic at our disposal, Lili will be able to design a plan to annihilate Lili's enemies!"

Lili seemed a little TOO excited with that statement. Again, Lefiya could only be reminded of the way Finn's eyes would sparkle when he found a new ability to abuse in the Dungeon.

Then, Lili turned to look at Ais, and her gaze sharpened.

"And what about you, Miss Wallenstein? What can you do that's so special?"

Lili's tone dripped with hostility. Lefiya wanted to defend her fellow Familia member, but Lady Riveria had told her not to intervene, no matter what. Apparently, this was something Ais had to deal with on her own.

Thankfully, Ais was a little too airheaded to pick up on Lili's hostile tone. The Sword Princess calmly replied, "I am good at using my sword. Finn usually has me in the vanguard because I'm very fast, especially with my wind enchantment."

Lili then asked a couple more questions about Ais's wind magic and then made a couple more notes. Afterwards, she looked at the two top-tier adventurers.

"For now, Lili is thinking that Miss Lefiya will go near the middle of the formation, in front of the Supporters. Meanwhile, Miss Wallenstein will be the rearguard.

Now, Ais was used to being in the reserve forces. Finn often kept her there in case of emergencies or to let the younger Familia members train. However, she had never, EVER, been assigned to the rearguard. Her obvious discomfort must have shown on her face because Lili arched a brow. The prum sat back in her seat, her blouse creasing around her.

"Lili isn't here to do the same thing as the Braver. Lili is the Dauntless, which means she has her own ways and reasons. Which means the rearguard for the Sword Princess," the prum huffed when she finished.

The hostility in her tone was so apparent that even Ais clued into it. Ais tilted her head, "Do you hate me?"

Lili looked Ais in the eye as she replied, "Lili doesn't like you because Master Bell is too kind. Lili hasn't forgiven you because her Familia already has. Lili is going to make it very clear; Lili is incredibly angry at the Sword Princess. Lili is willing to work with Miss Ais for the sake of her Familia and the alliance, but Lili will not be Miss Ais's friend. Do we understand each other?"

Ais nodded, not shocked at all. Honestly, she was happy that someone in Hestia Familia was angry at her. So, she nodded to Lili.

"I understand. I will go to the rearguard then, and I will protect you all. I will earn your forgiveness," replied Ais.

Lili shook her head, "It's too late for forgiveness. Instead, work to earn Lili's trust."

Ais nodded again.

After watching awkwardly, in silence, Lefiya raised her hand, "So…is there anything else we can do to help?"

Lili nodded, "Yes, Lili wants to hear your accounts first-hand of floors twenty-nine to thirty-four. Miss Aisha and Miss Ryuu have told me what they remembered, but it has been a bit of time since their own adventures."

Even though all of the last expedition party had been down to the thirty-seventh floor, they didn't have any time to take in the sights. Since they were so focused on finding Master Bell and Miss Ryuu, the Xenos led them faster than they thought possible. Same with the journey back up to the surface. They all had vague memories, but it had been a long year away...

Lefiya nodded along, "Well…those floors are known as the Great Desert. Starting on the twenty-eighth floor is a humid swamp-like area. It is known as the river delta because the area is fed by the Water Capital."

Lili nodded along, "But then, it changes, right?"

"The Dungeon actively tries to kill you," replied Ais, "The Desert Dwelling, based solely on its environment, is the most dangerous set of floors in the Dungeon."

"How so?"

The three turned to find Urashima standing in the doorway. The young ninja bodyguard walked over, taking a seat next to Lili, arms crossed over his chest. He also glared at the Sword Princess.

"Don't be rude, you dummy!" Finished Otohime, who came running in after him. She swatted Urashima over the head, "Me and Miss Wallenstein have already patched things, haven't we?"

Ais nodded, allowing herself a small smile, "Yes, with my promise to protect all of you."

"You see," added Otohime, facing Urashima, "So, you need to calm down. If I'm ok, you're ok, got that?"

Urashima shook his head, "She almost killed you. I'll work with her, but I'm not forgiving her."

When Otohime opened her mouth to respond, Urashima cut her off, "If I was the one that was almost executed, how would you have reacted."

That stopped Otohime's argument. She sat there blankly before shaking her head, "Ok, I understand. I'm sorry."

Urashima rolled his eyes but placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. Then, he turned to Ais and Lefiya, "So, what is this about a desert?"

Lefiya was too embarrassed by the show of affection to explain, so the task fell to the ordinarily quiet Ais.

"The twenty-ninth floor is connected to the twenty-eighth, which means that there is a river running through the middle of the floor. You follow the river from one end to another," began Ais.

"But where's the desert?" asked Otohime, clueless as ever.

"The floor is a desert," answered Ais, "It's all open, no maze or labyrinth, just desert. Which is what makes it so dangerous. The open floor is scorching, which means that you can die of dehydration."

"But there's a river?" asked Urashima.

Ais shook her head, "The river is filled with monsters. You only refill your water when you have to. Also, there are powerful sandstorms. If you aren't careful, they'll blow you away to the edge of the desert. You'll get lost, which means that you'll die."

Lefiya nodded, "Lady Riveria says that it won't be the monsters that kill you in the desert. It's the dehydration, starvation, and heatstroke that can kill you."

"But the monsters are still dangerous," added Ais, "They pop up from the sand, and they surprise you in the night. They'll try and attack your supplies too."

"And that's what the twenty-ninth is like?" asked Otohime.

Lili answered that question, "No, that's what every floor is like. You follow the river from floor to floor…until you can't, correct?"

Lefiya nodded, "Floor thirty-three, the most dangerous floor. There is no river to follow, only desert. There is a path, formed by years of adventurers, but it isn't perfect."

"But there is nothing but desert?" asked Lili.

Ais seemed to consider the question but then shook her head, "No, there are oases and ruins. The oases are like rest points. Monsters don't go near them, but they are not mapped."

"And the ruins?"

Ais looked Lili down, "They are often filled with rare resources and materials," when she saw Lili's eyes glow with greed, the Sword Princess frowned, "It's too dangerous. There are almost no adventurers who make it back from the ruins. Even Finn doesn't search for them."

Lili considered Ais's words. She hated the Sword Princess, but she also understood that there was no one that knew the Dungeon better than her. The prum nodded, "Understood, we will not actively search for the ruins then."

"Are these ruins not mapped?" asked Otohime.

Lefiya shook her head, "No, again, so few adventurers return. The only well-mapped areas are the riverbanks and the path on floor thirty-three."

Lili nodded along, "This all fits with what Miss Ryuu and Miss Aisha have told Lili."

"Excuse me, I also have a question," began Lefiya, "What is our schedule like?"

Lili nodded, looking through a sheaf of papers. She pulled out one and began reading, "The first day, Lili plans for us to defeat Goliath, stop in Riviria for lunch, and then continue to floor twenty-four and rest for the day. For day two, we will be heading into the Water Capital to fight Amphisbaena. Then, we return to floor twenty-four. Lili wants us to be as well-rested as possible before we begin the rest of our journey. Then, we begin our march to floor thirty-four."

Ais nodded, "How long to floor thirty-floor?"

Lili shrugged, "While our overall party strength is more than enough, this will be many of them's first time that deep in the Dungeon. Lili does not want to rush it."

Ais nodded again, "You're smart, like Finn."

Lili blushed at the compliment and had to actively remind herself that she was angry at the Sword Princess.

"What about the mission?" asked Lefiya.

"The one on floor thirty?" responded Lili.

Lefiya nodded, and the prum sighed, "We are not sure. Goddess Hestia has been trying to learn more, but it is hard to learn anything. We do know that we'll be able to learn more once we're down there."

"From who?" asked Ais.

Lili fidgeted in her seat before she replied, "We will be working with the Xenos."

Silence filled the room before Ais let out a sigh of relief, "Good, I need to apologize to them too."

Lili blinked, then nodded, "Ok, so after going to floor thirty-four, we stay there for a week. Just long enough to gather the required materials on the safe floor. Then, we make our way home as quickly as possible."

"Sounds good," said Lefiya, "Anything you need from us specifically?"

Lili shook her head, "Bring your own weapons and armour, but Hestia Familia will be providing the undine clothe and other basic requirements. Mister Welf will be in charge of equipment repairs during the trip."

Ais made an "ooohhh" sound. The idea of having an in-Familia smith come along to fix their weapons and equipment was a novel idea to the top-tier adventurer. She looked forward to the opportunities this would bring.

The small group then spent a couple more hours going over battle plans and strategies. Even though Ais didn't want to be the rearguard, this was her position. So, she familiarized herself with who she would be protecting. She didn't really know anyone in Hestia Familia, except for Bell, not to mention that she would be protecting members of Miach Familia, Takemikazuchi Familia, and a member of Hermes Familia. This was her duty, though, and Ais Wallenstein was nothing if not dutiful. She was so enraptured in her studies that she didn't notice that others had come to join her.

"Ummm, excuse me, Ais," a finger poked her in the shoulder. She jolted out of intense focus to find Bell standing in front of her. Without her own realization, her lips quirked up into a smile.

"Bell, it is good to see you," said Ais.

Bell nodded, also smiling, "It's good to see you too. Will you be staying here for dinner?"

At his question, Ais looked to Lefiya. She wanted to stay for dinner, but there might be trouble later. However, Lefiya was happily talking to Elwin, and when she heard Bell's offer for dinner, she nodded.

"Well then, Bell Cranel, I think we will be joining you for dinner," the little elf pointed a finger at him, "but no funny business, you understand? I will be watching closely to make sure that you don't make any moves on Miss Ais!"

Elwin snorted, "Making a move? What kind of move?"

Lefiya cheeks grew a dusted pink, "You know! A move! He could try and wrap his arm around her shoulder or something!"

"What, like this?" replied Elwin, who proceeded to wrap an arm around Lefiya's shoulder, drawing her in tight.

"Yes!" screamed Lefiya, who looked uncomfortable. She did not push herself away, though.

Elwin laughed, and soon he and Lefiya fell into light bickering.

Ais turned back to Bell, "Yes, we will be staying for dinner."

Both girls seemed too excited to worry about what their Familia might say. So, they would stay for dinner, have some fun, and then go home. Really, it was all in the name of becoming a better, more cohesive team. At least, that was their reasoning.

When Mikoto and Haruhime, who were cooking that day, called for dinner, everyone started making their way to the dining room. Before Ais could enter, though, she felt someone tug on her arm. She turned to find Elwin standing there, awkwardly. He jerked his head off to the side and walked away. Ais followed.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

Elwin rubbed the back of his head, "I was just kind of curious…I see Lefiya get really sad sometimes because of this person she thinks of. Is she ok? I know it might be private, but," Elwin looked to the dining hall, "I just worry about her."

Ais looked away, "Lefiya's not like me; she's very innocent and kind. So, when something bad happens, or she loses someone, it hits her harder than most."

Ais turned her head away, "That's all I want to say."

"Thank you," replied Elwin. The young half-elf offered his hand to shake, and Ais took it gladly.

"If you want to know more…maybe ask Lefiya or Riveria," Ais looked up, "Riveria usually knows what to do about these things."

The two joined in for dinner.

With that, preparations for Hestia Familia's big expedition was just about finished.

Chapter Text

The morning of the expedition, before the sun had risen, Bell was lying in bed, looking at the ceiling. He had been tossing and turning all night, only sleeping in fits and bits. Maybe he'd be rested, maybe he wouldn't; There was a lot on Bell's mind. Not only was he leading his Familia and others down to the bottom of the lower floors, but they were also investigating the most recent Xenos incident. And on top of that, Ais was coming with them!

Once upon a time, Bell would've loved to go on an expedition with the Sword Princess, but now his heart twisted. He was still trying to figure out their new relationship, and a high-pressure environment like the Dungeon was probably not conducive to that kind of feeling exploration.

As Bell lay there in contemplation, there was a knock at the door. Bell got out of bed, bleary from lack of sleep, and he opened the door to find Ryuu, dressed in her combat gear.

"Bell, I was…" the elf trailed off then and started to turn red.

"Ryuu, what's wrong?" asked Bell, raising a hand to check her forehead. If she had a fever, then she couldn't go into the Dungeon. Which would be a significant setback; she was one of their top adventurers, probably only second to Ais.

Before his hand made contact, Ryuu stepped away, "Bell, please put on a shirt."

Bell looked down to realize that he was, in fact, nude from the waist up. Thank the Goddess, he had been wearing pyjama pants…

The boy scrambled, and he slammed the door in Ryuu's face. He then ran to his dresser to grab the tunic he wore underneath his armour. As he slipped it over his head, he returned to the door, and he opened it to find Ryuu still standing there waiting for him.

"I'm so sorry, Ryuu!" replied Bell, careful to keep his voice down in the dark, "I just didn't realize…."

"Couldn't sleep?" asked Ryuu when Bell trailed off.

Bell nodded sheepishly.

"I'm the same. This situation promises to be…difficult. Call it my adventurer's intuition, but I think things are about to get very complicated," added Ryuu. The elf blushed again, "I thought I would come and see if you were awake to talk about it…as Vice-Captain to Captain, of course!"

Bell nodded, also blushing, "Right! We should talk about these things! For our Familia!"

The two top-tier adventurers then stood there in silence.

"So…any ideas on how to calm down?" asked Ryuu.

Bell pondered the thought, and only one idea came to mind. Although, that would mean showing Ryuu and explaining his situation. Bell considered the elf in front of him. Hestia was the most important person in his life, he loved Ais the most, and Lili and Welf were the siblings he never had. Bell trusted Ryuu, though, more than all of them. The elven warrior had a stalwart presence about her, and it made Bell feel safe. When she chose to leave Orario, to leave the Hostess, Bell had felt guilty, but he was also incredibly relieved. Bell trusted Ryuu, and he decided to show her his past, just like she had shown him.

"I can think of one thing that has helped me…if you don't mind following?" asked Bell, quiet and unsure.

Ryuu placed a hand on his shoulder, smiled, and gave it a squeeze, "I'd follow you anywhere, Bell."

The two left the house a little while later. They had written a small note explaining that they would be back for breakfast and that they were taking care of a last-minute issue. Bell led Ryuu through the quiet streets of Orario. Eventually, Ryuu started to recognize where they were going, the Adventurer's Graveyard.

Bell led her through the gates, and then he turned off the paved pathways. Instead, he was pushing through the bushes till he arrived at the three mangled graves. He knelt down in front of the middle one.

"Bell, what is this place?" asked Ryuu, a niggling suspicion tugging at the back of her head, "Whose graves are these?"

Bell didn't look at her when he responded, "I don't really know the other two, but this one in the middle is the grave of my aunt, Alfia."

Ryuu's blood ran cold, and her past flashed before her eyes. She remembered the battles she had to face, and most importantly, she remembered her dear friend, Ardee.

"Bell…is this what Hermes came to show you?" asked Ryuu, voice quiet and cold.

Bell nodded, studying the ground.

"Then he didn't tell you everything…if that grave is Alfia's…then the other two belong to Erebus and Zard, two of the greatest villains in Orario's history! Either Hermes lied to you, or he's manipulating you!" said Ryuu, practically spitting out the words.

"Maybe he is," replied Bell, "But even so…is it that bad?"

"Bell! These people are evil! They turned on Orario! They were heroes, but they turned their backs on the city and killed innocent people! They're monsters!" replied Ryuu.

Ryuu saw Bell's body tremble and shake.

"I know that, alright?" replied Bell, tears falling, "But can't I just have this? Can't I just have a family? Can't I have somewhere that I came from?"

Ryuu almost said, 'I thought we were your family,' but she held her tongue. Bell was obviously hurting, and right now, he needed her support. Ryuu crouched down next to him.

"Bell, I won't claim to understand. The only family I ever had, I ran away from. Then, I had to make a new one with Astrea Familia, and after that, at the Hostess of Fertility. Now, I do it again with you and Goddess Hestia and everyone else. But I will tell you, we are all here for you," said the elf, holding his shoulders.

Bell shook his head, "I know, but it's not the same!" Bell reached out to the grave, "I know it's difficult, and it doesn't make sense, but talking to her…it feels like I have roots. I feel like I have a history I didn't have before."

There was a quiet before Bell spoke again, "I know that she was a bad person. Hermes told me about the dark days of Orario. He told me about what Aunt Alfia did…and how you knew her. He told me…about Ardee. I'm sorry, Ryuu."

Bell expected rage. He expected hatred and shouting. Instead, what he found was Ryuu, also crying she perched next to him. They pulled each other close, both seeking warmth and comfort.

"Why did you bring me here, Bell?"

Bell sighed, "She was your friend. You deserved to know that I know."

"Do you know that I helped kill your aunt?" asked Ryuu.

Bell nodded, "Lord Hermes told me about that too."

A moment of silence. Then, Ryuu spoke again.

"Do you hate me for it?"

Bell shook his head, "No, like you said, she did horrible things and took part in the deaths of innocent people."

"But you don't hate her?"

"I don't know…but I do know that I'm happy she existed. If she's real, then it means that my parents are real…and that I have…."

Bell trailed off, unable to finish. It sounded silly to say out loud. Of course, he had parents; how else would he be alive?

To know that, though, and to have proof and believe it, were two totally different things. Ryuu seemed to understand because she nodded. The elf looked at the grave.

"Obviously, there is a lot more for us to talk about here…" began Ryuu, "but for now, I suppose if she helps you calm down, then it is acceptable," Ryuu looked to Bell, "so, what do you do now?"

Bell shrugged, "I talk to her, and I hope that she is listening."

Ryuu nodded and turned back to the grave, "Ummm…hello Alfia, I know that it has been a while…and that we aren't friends…."

Bell nodded encouragingly.

Ryuu sighed, "I know we were enemies, Alfia, but there's one thing I'm sure we would agree on. Since you're not here, I will do everything within my power to protect your nephew," Ryuu blushed, "I care about him a great deal. I swear on your grave that I'll keep him safe."

No one spoke then. Bell was staring at Ryuu, who was looking at the ground. After a minute of silence, Ryuu stood up.

"I think it's time we returned home," Ryuu turned around, "I will be waiting outside the graveyard."

Her movements were stiff, and her voice was tight. Ryuu was most certainly not done with this conversation, and she might very well be angry with Bell, but she was focusing on the expedition for now. As she walked away, the elf seemed to trip on a non-existent root.

Bell turned back to the grave, "I know you probably don't like her, Auntie, but I do. Ryuu's one of my most trustworthy companions, and I don't know what I would do without her."

Bell told Alfia about the upcoming expedition and explained his trepidation about working with Ais. Things were starting to make sense to Bell now. No matter how much he thought they had begun to trust each other again, Bell knew that it wasn't real, not yet. This was the Dungeon they were talking about, and they had to trust each other absolutely. And if Bell was honest…he didn't trust Ais.

Bell finished telling Alfia about his fears, and then he said goodbye. He found Ryuu waiting for him outside the gates, and the two adventurers made their way home. The walk back was quiet until they got close to home. When the manor was in sight, Bell turned to Ryuu.

"Ummm Ryuu, I was hoping that…." Bell trailed off.

Ryuu smiled, "No need to worry, Bell, I won't be telling anyone about Alfia."

Bell breathed like a tremendous pressure had been released, "Thank you, Ryuu; I really mean it."

The two returned home to find their Familia putting together the last touches for their supplies. Hestia was the first to spot the two Familia executives.

"Ahhh, there you are. I was worried I'd have to send out a search party," the Goddess held up their note, "This was the only thing stopping me from totally freaking out."

"We apologize, Goddess Hestia," replied Ryuu, who nodded her head.

Hestia waved it off, "No problem. You two are executives now, remember? You gotta get over being here for the small stuff."

"For once, Lili agrees with Goddess Hestia," answered the prum, "Leave the logistics to Lili and Mister Welf. Now, all we're waiting for is…."

"Hello?" came a familiar voice.

Lili smiled, "Our allies."

Working together, Miach Familia, Takemikazuchi Familia, Hestia Familia, and Aisha made their way to the Dungeon, all loaded with their supplies. Haruhime, Lili, and Chigusa carried the most, with everyone else carrying just what they would need for themselves.

At the entrance to the Dungeon, the Loki Familia executives and Hephaistos were waiting for them. When Hephaistos saw Welf, she dragged him away, saying that she had a parting gift to give. Finn talked to Lili, and Riveria pulled Bell aside.

The high elf loomed over him, "Listen up, Bell Cranel, I am entrusting you with my daughter, my apprentice, and my little brother. If anything happens to any of them, you'll answer to me. Do we understand each other?"

Bell nodded frantically, and Riveria walked back to her Familia, seemingly satisfied. When she found a laughing Loki and Gareth waiting for her, she smacked them both over the head.

Bell couldn't focus on them, though, because Lili decided that it was time.

"Everyone, it's time to get moving! Form up around Lili to hear your jobs!"

Loki Familia and Hephaistos left with Hestia in tow. It was a collective decision that it would be too dangerous for the Goddess to stay by herself. Instead, she would be living with Hephaistos for the next week while she worked. She bid goodbye to her children, saving Bell for last. The Goddess took his hands, her blue shawl rustling around her. The bells in her hair ribbons made a twinkling sound as she moved.

"Bell, I want you to promise me that you'll come home safe, alright?"

Bell nodded, "I'll always come back to you."

Hestia gave his hands one final squeeze before she turned away. She left with Loki Familia, walking side-by-side with Hephaistos.

Bell rejoined his Familia, hearing Lili's party formation for the first eighteen floors.

"At the front of the party, scouting ahead will be Lady Otohime, Mister Urashima, and Miss Mikoto. If there's anything suspicious going on, you come running back and get help," Lili levelled a glare at Otohime, "Is Lili understood?"

Otohime nodded sheepishly.

"In the front, as the first line of defence, will be Mister Ouka and Mister Welf. Behind them will be Miss Chigusa and Miss Daphne to provide support," continued Lili.

The four adventurers nodded in confirmation.

"Then it will be the mages, Mister Elwin and Miss Lefiya. Lili, Miss Cassandra, and Lady Haruhime will be right behind them," Lili turned to the Amazon, "and Miss Aisha will be in charge of protecting us."

Said amazon, which the Gods had given the new Alias of Hippolyta: Queen of the Amazons, tossed her hair back. She grinned, "I hear you little prum," she looked at Bell, "All that leaves is for the three monsters to bring up the rear then."

Ais narrowed her eyes, but Lili nodded, "That is true. Lili would like the three strongest members of the party to remain in the rear guard for now. This way, the weaker and newer members can train upfront. This formation will be the same when the party faces down the Goliath."

Lili looked at Otohime, who had her new katana at her side, "Again, Lili would remind everyone to keep calm and not go charging off."

Otohime studied the ground and replied with a "Yes, Commander."

When Lili was satisfied that everyone understood their roles, they finally made their way into the Dungeon. Watching from the top of Babel was Freya.

Allen stood next to her, "I don't get why you won't just let us take out the rest of them down there."

Freya moved a hand to pet her chariot, "Now, now, I promised our friends down there that they would have the first shot," Freya looked at Bell's tainted soul and saw it reacting to the presence of the Sword Princess, "Besides, he's not right yet… he's not…perfect."

Within the Dungeon, the assembled party was quickly making their way through the first seventeen floors. A large part of their speed, though, came from just how fast their forward scouts were able to alert and clear the way. Now that she was level four, Mikoto's Yatanokurogarasu stretched out even further. She was finding monsters over forty feet away, which gave her party plenty of time to react.

And since most of the party's power was loaded at the back, most monsters were too scared to attack. Everything came at them head-on, which made it easy for their vanguard to respond accordingly. This also meant that the rearguard had a lot of time to themselves.

"Bell, are you excited?" asked Ais, trying to make conversation. Tione had told her that there were many opportunities on this trip to get closer to Bell. While everyone else had been practicing their battle strategies and weapon skills, Ais had studied the art of 'Flirting' from her fellow Familia members.

Ais placed a hand on Bell's wrist. Apparently, physical contact was crucial for this flirting business. Ais also thought it was a good idea to hold Bell's wrist, so he didn't run away. The bunny had a bad habit of doing that.

Bell tilted his head at Ais, looking at his hand, "Yes, Ais, I'm ok…why are you holding my wrist?"

Ais almost responded that she was trying to flirt with him, but then she remembered that she wasn't supposed to say that. She scrambled for an answer…

"I'm very nervous and need you to help keep me calm," replied Ais, as serious as ever. Tione had tried to help her practice her facial expressions but soon decided that such things were beyond Ais's abilities…for now.

"I'm sorry, Miss Wallenstein…but you're nervous…. on the seventeenth floor?" asked Ryuu from Bell's other side. Ryuu was all for caution in the Dungeon, but Ais Wallenstein was probably the best monster killer in Orario…why would she be nervous?

Ais nodded, "Yes, I'm very nervous," she shuffled closer to Bell, "I need you to hold me, Bell."

While Bell almost had a panic attack from Ais's sudden…closeness, an Amazon watched on. She turned towards the Renard she was protecting in the middle of the party.

"You know, if you're not careful, the Sword Princess is going to steal him away from you," commented Aisha.

Haruhime looked back to watch the spectacle. The fox girl frowned but did not blush. She looked to Aisha, "I feel as it should upset me more, but it doesn't. This past year, travelling with Master Bell…something changed…."

Aisha quirked an eyebrow at that, but it was Cassandra who responded first.

"I think I get that…" began the quiet healer. She had a tight grip on her staff, and her nerves still weren't great, but she seemed to be holding herself better than usual.

Looking towards the front of the party, she continued, "Bell was the first person to listen to my dreams. He was the first one to believe me, and that meant a lot. In a way, he saved me," the healer frowned, "but after he left, I started to realize something; I only had the one moment. That didn't feel like enough to fall in love. I began to think…."

Cassandra started to change to a dark crimson colour, "Well…what if there was someone who had always been watching over me and who had always believed in me?"

Aisha followed Cassandra's line of sight, and she smiled, "Ahhh, yes, that makes sense."

Obviously, Haruhime had begun to think similarly because she also looked to the party's front and blushed. There was someone who had been watching over Haruhime for quite some time, but were those feelings stronger than those for the hero who saved her? Haruhime also looked behind her and realized that the more important question was: did she even have a chance with Bell Cranel?

Just in front of them, a pair of mages had their own discussion. Even though they weren't talking about love directly, the emotion was certainly still hanging in the air.

"So, what are your active spells for this expedition Elwin?" asked Lefiya, trying to start a conversation.

"Well, there's Datauri, the one that gives me the fist-fighter ability. Then there's Aurata, a shielding spell. Finally, there's Geminus, a spell that allows me to split in two for fighting," explained Elwin. At the mention of the third spell, something switched in Lefiya. Her eyes went dark, and her grip on her staff tightened.

"Lefiya, are you ok?" asked Elwin.

Lefiya nodded robotically.

"You know, I'm always here," responded Elwin as he placed a hand on the elf's shoulder, "I'll help in whatever way I can. So, if you ever want to talk about this…lost friend of yours…" Elwin didn't know what he was saying, and even his own words sounded painful to his ears. How was he supposed to comfort someone?

"She was so much more than my friend," responded Lefiya, her voice quiet and distant. Before their conversation could continue, though, they arrived at their destination. Lili called a halt to the party to explain their next formation.

"Everyone level four and below will work to engage the Goliath. By Lili's calculations, it should be spawning in ten minutes, which gives us time to set up the way we want. You level fives, and the Sword Princess, are on crowd control. Any excess monsters that spawn are yours to deal with. Miss Haruhime and Miss Cassandra, you two will be with Lili to provide support. Mister Elwin, you will be guarding us," explained the little prum.

Everyone gave nods of understanding, and the party filed into the room. In all honesty, this was not the first big challenge. Even though it was a Monster Rex, the Goliath was nothing compared to the party composed of top-tier and second-tier adventurers.

The level fours arrayed themselves in front of the wall where Goliath was known to spawn. Then, Chigusa, Ouka, and Welf took up position behind them. Their job was to pick off any stray monsters near Goliath's wall while providing support against the great beast. Then, the supporters took up position to the side, and Lili surveyed the battlefield. All that was left was for their top adventurers to engage the monsters hiding on the outskirts.

Those beasts were nothing, though, and ten minutes passed peacefully. When the time was up, the room began to shake. The great wall of crystal began to fracture, and the party of adventurers drew their weapons. Birthed in front of them, crawling out from a great fissure, was Goliath in all its disgusting glory.

The great beast pulled itself out, surveyed the adventurers in front of it, and let out a mighty roar. As if in response, the party's resident royalty roared out her own defiance. She looked to her companions, who nodded, and she sprang into motion.

Otohime had learned since her last encounter with the monster. Now, she ducked and weaved, aiming for the legs of the behemoth. She focused on its left leg, and Urashima focused on its right.

While that happened, Mikoto began chanting, "I humbly preach to you, my benevolent War God…."

She began her magic, dodging the great beast's fists as she sang. Daphne danced around the other fist of the Goliath, and in this way, all of the monster's great appendages were occupied. This left the smith to point his great magic sword at the Goliath's face.

"Hii!" shouted Welf Crozzo.

A great blast of flames answered, and Goliath reeled back from pain. It swept a massive arm, aiming to bowl overall its opponents, but the great strength of Ouka caught it. The large man dug his feet in, slowing the momentum of Goliath's arm. He could not stop it, but his strength gave his allies time to jump out of the way.

While that happened, Ais Wallenstein began to feel consumed with jealousy. When they had entered the room, Ryuu had instantly paired herself with Bell for monster duty. This made sense since they were in the same Familia. That didn't mean that Ais had to be happy about it, though. So, instead of fighting with Bell, Ais protected Lefiya as she chanted.

"Arcs Ray!" cried out the elf.

In response, a great piercing arrow of magic obliterated the monsters in front of her. Due to Lefiya's own nervousness, the two Loki Familia members were focused on Elwin and the supporters. All monsters near them were destroyed relatively quickly. Between bouts of jealousy, Ais noticed that Lefiya's magic seemed a little more erratic than usual.

Goliath let out another mighty roar, swinging both of its fists down together.

"Everyone, get back! Shockwave incoming!" howled Lili.

The resounding boom of the hammer blow left a dent in the floor. However, that was also the opening the adventurers had been waiting for. Urashima and Otohime took the opportunity to jump up and run along the beast's arms. They cut and slashed as they ran, finishing with great stabs to the beast's shoulders, Otohime with her bisento and Urashima with both of his daggers.

"Kuro Kara!" finished Mikoto.

When Goliath stood back up, Mikoto rose with it. Her wings turned her into a significant annoyance. She buzzed around the Monster Rex and started cutting at its neck. In response, Goliath tried to swat her out of the air.

Seeing that the beast was sufficiently distracted, Lili shouted to Welf, "Use the blade!"

Welf nodded and took a running start. Ouka carried his shield at an angle, and when Welf jumped off the top of it, the big Far Eastern man gave him a boost. Now, the original plan that Lili and Welf had gone over was that Welf was supposed to use the blade's fireside. What happened was that Welf stabbed down, wind edge first. So, when Welf activated his magic sword, a great tornado raged inside Goliath. It became filled with the power of the air. The beast ballooned in size until the magic winds could not be contained. Then, it exploded.

What followed was a rain of guts and blood that covered the adventurers head to toe. Thankfully, the magic stone had remained unharmed, and it fell to the ground with a thump. Also, falling to the ground was part of the Goliath's fur. Welf admired his handiwork for all of a second before hell broke loose.

"WELF!" shouted Otohime. Being closest to the beast meant that she was the most drenched in gore.

As the Princess bore down on him, it took Urashima and Mikoto to restrain her.

"I understand your feelings, Milady, but we can't kill him!"

"Please calm down, Lady Otohime! I'm sure Sir Welf did not mean it!"

The struggle continued for three minutes before Otohime had calmed down enough to see reason. That said, many of the female members of the party were not happy with the smith. Even the Sword Princess seemed angry. Tione had been very clear that to keep Bell's attention, Ais had to look her best at all times. That was not possible covered in monster guts.

"It is alright, everyone," said Ryuu, "There are springs on Floor Eighteen that we can use to clean ourselves."

Everyone made it clear that this was the most desirable plan. They all hustled down to Floor Eighteen, bypassing Rivira. Instead, they pushed for the same springs they had used over a year ago after the pass parade. The girls claimed the first usage, but a certain elf had a stringent warning before they left.

"There will be no funny business!" said Lefiya, "If I even catch a whiff of one of you trying to peek, there will be dire consequences!"

"Except you, Ura! Peek all you want!" declared Otohime, but then she pouted, "But only peeking at me! If I catch you looking at anyone else, I'll punish you!"

Even Ais took time to look at Bell, "No looking."

The girls marched off then, leaving the boys to their imagination. Five minutes passed in silence before Elwin got bored and poked Urashima, who was sitting cross-legged and deep in thought.

"So, how's that meditation going?" asked Elwin.

"Shut up," replied Urashima.

"Meditation?" asked Ouka.

Elwin cackled, "Our ninja boy here is trying to distract himself from imagining his Princess naked right now."

Ura started to turn red, "I said shut up."

"Oh, come on, are you telling me you can't?" Elwin leaned in close to whisper in Urashima's ear, "Otohime is naked there right now, scrubbing clean all the monster blood. And what lies underneath? That perfect porcelain skin of hers just dying to feel your touch."

Urashima broke meditation then, pulling his hood down his face to hide his embarrassment.

Ouka coughed, "I'm sorry, but…is it really a big deal? Since you two are together, you must have seen her…bare before, yes?"

Urashima shook his head. The mumbling from beneath his clothing was barely heard, "Me and Otohime are not…together."

Ouka frowned, "But you two are so close…you share a skill that proclaims your love…."

Urashima, still turning a dark shade of red, explained, "We have promised to each other that we cannot be together until we see each other beyond the roles that have guided us our whole lives."

Meanwhile, with the girls…

"Seems a little stupid if you ask me," said Aisha, bluntly, "You two love each other, very deeply, I might add, so why bother with the waiting?

Otohime blushed, "Because I want to make sure…."

"Make sure of what?" asked Ais. This conversation was critical to her understanding and education.

"Make sure that he loves me for me, not for the Princess," replied Otohime.

"What's the difference?" asked Daphne, who was helping scrub Cassandra clean. The healer had broken down and was now trying to put her brain back together. It was difficult to do since she felt Daphne's body press up against hers.

Otohime pondered the question as she wrung out her hair. She stood in contemplative silence. When her hair was finally dry, she nodded.

"If he loved me as the Princess, that meant that he just loved protecting me," began Otohime, "But that's not actually love. Love is…it would be…."

The Princess stumbled, but Aisha helped her along, "It would be an unequal relationship?"

Otohime smiled as she nodded, "Yes, exactly," she clapped her hands together, "Love, and being someone's partner, is about an equal relationship! It is about us supporting each other, for good and bad. It isn't a one-way thing!" Otohime shook her head, "I know Ura loves me, and he knows that I love him, but we want to make sure we love each other as equals."

"So, it's not just about saving each other?" asked Ais, in total shock.

"I think that what Lady Otohime means is that there is more to it than just protection," replied Haruhime, the gears in her brain turning, "The word is partner after all."

Aisha ruffled the renard's hair, "That's a good point."

Back with the guys, Urashima had decided on retaliation. He turned to his elfish companion.

"You do realize Princess Otohime isn't alone, correct?"

Elwin tilted his head, "What do you mean?"

"Lefiya was covered in blood and guts just as much as everyone else," replied Urashima. He was trying to wipe down and oil his metallic arms as much as possible before bath time.

The gears began to turn in Elwin's brain, and like a lightning bolt, he turned a dark pink colour. The half-elf turned to stare in the direction that the women had walked off to.

"So, you mean that…Lefiya is…."

"Yep," finished Welf. He looked over at Ouka and Bell, "Just like Chigusa and Ais."

Then, every man except the smith got caught up in their own daydreams.

These men were not alone, though. For a most peculiar reason, Mikoto was daydreaming too. The rest of the girls had just assumed that her obsession with baths had taken over, but the reality was that she was thinking about the golden hair of a close friend…

"Hey Black Crow!" shouted Aisha, "Wake up!"

To punctuate this, the amazon dunked the Far Eastern girl underwater. The sudden rush shook Mikoto out of her stupor. Why was she thinking of Haruhime of all people? Usually, her thoughts would drift to that of her God. In all the love talk that had taken place, though, something started to shift. For the briefest moment, there was a flicker of something else.

The rest of the bath was uneventful. The girls finished, and then they swapped with the men. The guys proceeded to have an uneventful bath, and not a single one of them considered the fact that the girls had just been in the same water.

Their side quest complete, the expedition stopped off in Rivira to leave the giant Goliath magic stone with Bors for the week. They paid for this storage with the Goliath fur drop item. Then, with a wave and a handshake, they were on their way through the Great Tree Labyrinth.

"Bell, bugbears!" called out Ryuu.

The monster attacks were relentless; great swarms of them washed over the party in every direction. The scouting party had pulled closer to help support the vanguard, and the three level four adventurers worked together to stop a swarm of battle boars. In the middle of the party, Ais stood at the ready. When asked why she was moved to protect the mages and supporters, Lili reminded her that the point was for Hestia Familia to get stronger. Ais pouted, but she accepted the answer. Now though, she was forced to watch Bell and Ryuu work in tandem to cut down the bugbears at the rear of the party.

"Golden-fleeced ram, who protects from all injuries, shine over me and my allies, protect us from ruin and devastation, I name thee Aries, the sign of the Ram: Aurata!"

At Elwin's completed change, a golden shell formed in front of the mages and supporters. A group of battle boars that were charging in front of them crashed against the shield. Elwin's teeth grit, and his feet slipped in response to the attack.

"Unleashed streak of light, bow limbs of the holy tree. You are an expert of the bow. Shoot, sniper of the fairies. Penetrate, arrow of absolute accuracy," added Lefiya, "Arcs Ray!"

A shot of light streamed out, piercing through an entire column of monsters. When Lili had asked Lefiya to fire off a spell, the original idea was to relieve some pressure from the front-line. Instead, Lefiya had obliterated the enemy. Elwin turned to stare at the little elf.

"That's your magic?"

Lefiya blushed, "Yes, why? Is there something wrong?"

"It's incredible!"

The half-elf had only been vaguely aware of Lefiya's magic. Every time she had cast it before, he had been fighting other battles. Now, he was face to face with Riveria's successor, and it made him tremble.

In the back, Bell and Ryuu dominated the entire party of bugbears. The great lumbering beasts swung their arms and met nothing but air as the two high-speed adventurers cut and slashed. Any monster that survived met a brutal end by way of Aisha's padao.

In the front, just when they finished off the last of the boars, a flock of firebirds came flying in. With his Veritas Burn skill, Welf took the point position, with Urashima right behind him. The birds' fire did nothing to his prosthetic arms. While they bore the brunt of the attack, Chigusa and Mikoto used ranged weapons to dispatch the rest.

After that prolonged battle, the group took a quick break. Thankfully, the worst of the wounds were some minor cuts and burns.

Bell was talking with Ryuu when Ais walked up to him. Her hands were hidden behind her back. She waited in silence until Bell finally noticed her standing there.

"Yes, Ais?" asked Bell, confused.

"I thought you might need a potion," responded Ais. From behind her back, she brought a simple potion, the vial half-full.

"Oh!" replied Bell, caught off-guard, "Um, thank you!"

Really, Bell had no need for the potion, but it seemed rude not to take it. When he finished it, he turned back to Ais, "But this was half-full; who drank the first half?"

"I did," came the monotone reply.

Watching the two interact, Ryuu felt sharp attacks of jealousy. She could hear Alise, Lyra, and Kaguya laughing at her from the beyond.

"Excuse me, Miss Wallenstein," asked Ryuu, partly out of spite, "But did you waste a potion? You did not fight in this attack, and I do not see any wounds."

Ais pouted, "It wasn't one of yours. I brought my own." She did not add that Tione had bought the potion for her for this specific moment.

Before Ryuu could continue reprimanding her, a little prum overheard the conversation, "To waste such an item, though!" Began Liliruka, "This is not Loki Familia! We do not have the same resources, and we cannot afford to squander! Also, why didn't you say you had the potion? Lili needs to know every resource and opportunity that the party has!"

In the face of Lili's jealousy-fuelled shouting, Ais cowered. This reminded her too much of Riveria and the reprimands the high elf could give. Suddenly, a hand came to rest on the Sword Princess's shoulder.

"Lay off of it, Little Bit. How's Ais supposed to know that?" said Welf. He turned his head, "Just be careful next time, ok. We don't have as much money as your Familia."

Ais nodded but looked at the ground, "I'm sorry."

Why was everything going so wrong?

"Eh, it was just one potion," Welf patted her shoulder a couple times before he walked off. Everyone else watched on, feeling awkward as they tried to make sense of this side of Ais Wallenstein. She did not seem like a mighty adventurer, more just like a young woman.

There were no further incidents to the twenty-fourth floor. The plan was to recuperate the rest of the day as much as possible. Tomorrow, they were going down to fight Amphisbaena. Instead of their original spot, in the hollow tree, Hestia Familia was using a large burrow area for their campsite. They had a much larger expedition force now and needed extra space.

When they got there, though, the area was occupied by a green dragon. The beast must have been irregular, for it was almost twice the size of a normal beast. Lili took stock of the situation and opened her mouth to lay out a plan of attack.

"Awaken, Tempest."

There was a rush of wind, a large bursting sound, and a flash of steel. Where there had once been a giant, dangerous, irregular monster stood an adventurer. Standing there, Desperate in hand, was the Sword Princess.

She turned to her companions, "The campsite is clear."

Even Aisha walked inside in awe. This one moment was a clear reminder of the power Ais Wallenstein held. Lefiya almost laughed at her companions' reactions; she remembered thinking the same when she first joined Loki Familia.

Lili wanted to be angry, but instead, she set to work organizing the campsite. She started assigning tasks to the individual members.

"Everyone, please start handing over your weapons to Mister Welf. Miss Ryuu, Lady Haruhime, Miss Cassandra, and Mister Ouka, please set up our tents. Miss Mikoto, Miss Chigusa, and Mister Elwin, you are on dinner duty. Mister Urashima, Lady Otohime, and Miss Aisha start cutting the walls to prevent monsters from spawning. Master Bell, please take guard duty," Lili turned to their guests, unsure what to say or suggest.

Thankfully, Lefiya had an offer ready, "I'll go help with dinner."

Ais nodded, "And I'll go help stand guard."

Lili didn't want to agree to the Sword Princess's request, but she couldn't see Ais Wallenstein doing much else to help.

Ais walked over to stand with Bell at the mouth of the burrow. She started scanning the darkness while grasping for something to say.

"Excuse me, but Ais, why did you attack the dragon?" asked Bell.

"Because dragons are monsters, and we needed to set up camp."

"But what about fighting with your allies," responded Bell. He sounded so tired.

Ais frowned, "I knew I would be ok, so it was better to make sure no one else got hurt."

"Ais, you could've gotten hurt."

"I was fine. Monsters like that aren't as dangerous to me."

Why was Bell so insistent about this?

"You should've waited, though. You should've listened," responded Bell, hurt by Ais's refusal to understand.

"Listen for what?"

"For Lili, or for me or Ryuu, we have to work together, Ais," continued Bell, frustrated, "You're supposed to be a member of the party. You can't just run on ahead or attack without us. Do you think we can't do it?"

"But I never said that…."

Bell sighed, nervous about what he had to say next, "But you act like it, Ais. This entire time, you've been acting weird and different. Are you taking this seriously?"

Bell hated what he was saying; the problem was, this was his responsibility. He had to let people know when they were wrong so that the whole group could get stronger. Even if that meant being mean to Ais.

Meanwhile, the Sword Princess was wracking her brain for what she did wrong. She had done what Tione had told her, but now Bell was more upset! She just wanted to help him and make him happy. Ais remembered what everyone else had said when they were bathing.

"So, how can I help you?" asked the girl.

"Listen to Lili, don't run off," Bell turned to Ais and took one of her hands in his, "And please, Ais, just be yourself."

Surprised at his own boldness, Bell let go and whipped around to face forward. He said nothing else for their shift. And little Ais freaked out, marvelling at how warm Bell's hand was. She stared at her open palm for what felt like an eternity.

Later, when it was time for dinner, Aisha and Daphne rotated over to stand at the camp's entrance. Everyone else sat around to enjoy the Dungeon stew that Mikoto and Chigusa had made. Meanwhile, a half-elf had made a new friend apparently…

"This is amazing," said Ais, munching happily on a potato puff. True to his skills, Elwin had made Dungeon potato puffs for the Sword Princess. The top-tier adventurer was floored by the apparent miracle in front of her. She even made cute sounds of contentment as she ate.

Ouka watched on before leaning close to Welf, "I can't figure her out."

Welf shrugged, "Then don't try to. Treat her like how she actually is a regular adventurer."

Ouka nodded, "I suppose so."

At another part of the circle…

"Say ahhh!" said Otohime, holding a spoon near Urashima's mouth.

"Lady Otohime, I have both my arms. There is no need to feed me," replied Urashima.

"But I want to!"

Urashima rolled his eyes fondly and opened his mouth. He had a terrible habit of not saying no to Otohime's smile.

Ais saw the interaction and looked between her potato puff and Bell. Then, she remembered the conversation they just had and frowned. It was probably for the best to sit quietly and eat her potato. Bell saw this, and he saw how sad she looked. He put a little stew on his spoon.

"Would you like to try the stew, Ais?"

Ais's heart started to beat much faster than usual. Apparently, Tione said that was a good sign. It meant that happy things were going on. Ais nodded and accepted the spoonful of stew.

"Lili would like some stew as well!"

"If it is not too much to ask…" added Ryuu, her cheeks a dusty pink.

Bell scrambled but made sure to offer stew to the other two girls.

Mikoto opened her mouth, meaning to ask for Lady Haruhime, but she felt a tugging on her sleeve. She turned to find Haruhime looking at the ground, a beaming Chigusa behind her. The usually quiet Far Eastern girl was nodding encouragingly. The renard's hand was shaking, her tail swishing erratically behind her.

"Ummm…Mikoto, would you like to try some of my stew?"

Half of Mikoto's brain was confused, but the other half was made deliriously happy for some reason. Without understanding why, her lips parted, and she leaned forward.

Watching all of this, Lefiya turned to Elwin expectantly. The half-elf didn't notice, though, and gobbled up the last of his food. He patted his stomach afterwards and turned to Chigusa.

"That was a wonderful dinner! Thank you very much!"

When he turned his head back around, he found Lefiya glaring at him.

"What?"

The elf harumphed and crossed her arms, "Nothing."

Welf smacked his forward as he watched on.

"Some people really are clueless, aren't they?" asked Ouka from beside him.

The smith turned to his friend. Welf made a face of incredulousness, "Like you're one to talk big guy!"

Ouka's brow furrowed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Welf shook his head, "Not my place."

From their position at the entrance, Aisha and Daphne watched on.

"So, who do you think will be the first to get together?" asked the Amazon.

"Are we counting the Princess and the Bodyguard?" responded Daphne.

Aisha shook her head.

Daphne snorted, "Then I'd say the half-elf and the elf. Probably Enchantenko and Black Crow afterwards."

"And yourself?"

Daphne opened her mouth to respond, totally confused, but then she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned to find Cassandra standing there, holding a wooden bowl.

"I brought you dinner…."

Daphne felt her lips quirk up, "Thank you, Cassandra."

It was halfway through dinner that Daphne looked up to find a smug Aisha gazing at her. Then she looked back down at the bowl. Then her eyes widened, "Oh…."

With that, the first day of the expedition came to a loving close.

Chapter Text

Chapter 18:

Their first night in the Dungeon, Ais was restless. Something felt off in the underground space. She left the tent that the girls were sharing and wandered into the confined space of the campsite. Sitting on guard were Mikoto and Chigusa. While Ais stood in silence, she heard rustling and whimpering coming from the guy's tent. Not quite understanding decorum, she ducked inside to find the source of the noise. Within the canvas tent, she saw most of the boys passed out asleep. The only one moving was Bell Cranel. The boy tossed and turned in his sleep, muttering out half-formed sentences. He seemed to be sweating. Ais walked in silently, careful not to disturb anyone, and knelt down next to Bell. The girl reached out to take one of his hands.

He seemed so fragile at this moment. Holding his hand, Ais saw how calloused it was from months of constant training and work. His skin was dry and cracked, and there was a lattice of scars from bygone brawls. Trying to do what Riveria sometimes did to her, Ais traced meaningless patterns with her thumb on the back of Bell's hand.

Eventually, Bell's breathing started to soothe, and his shaking stopped. He did keep speaking, though. Words like 'failure, saviour, and hero' were constantly coming out of his mouth.

"Ah, I see you have been able to help him," said a soft voice.

Ais turned to find Haruhime standing at the tent's entrance. She padded inside and joined the Sword Princess next to her hero. The young fox girl reached out to push the fringes of Bell's hair aside.

Ais watched the interaction and tilted her head, "Haruhime, do you love Bell?"

In response, Haruhime smiled and nodded, "I believe so, yes," she looked to the tent entrance, "But I also believe that we mean that differently."

"What do you mean?"

Haruhime shrugged, "I spent most of the past year around Master Bell. I talked with him, told stories to him, and travelled around the world with him. I got to know him beyond…well…that is…"

"Beyond what?"

"Beyond the hero that I had made him out to be," Haruhime looked down at Bell, smiling fondly, "He saved my life, you know?"

Ais nodded; she had heard the story.

"Not just from Ishtar Familia, though. Before Master Bell found me, I believed I didn't deserve to be saved. I was a prostitute and thought that meant I was undeserving of life or love," continued Haruhime, whispering as she went.

"It was Bell and Mikoto who told me differently. They both worked to save me and remind me that I had meaning and a right to live. I had a right to dream of a better life," Haruhime looked over at Ais, "I am sure you have felt the same?"

Ais nodded, "Back when we attacked Knossos, the last time, I heard the sound of a bell, and it saved me." Ais frowned, "I almost turned into something bad…"

"But you didn't," reminded Haruhime.

Ais frowned, but she did betray him…

The two women were so lost in thought that they didn't notice the first stirrings on consciousness around them.

"My oh my, how indecent of you two," came a third voice.

The two women looked to find Welf rubbing the sleep from his eyes, the rest of the guys stirring around him. Including…

"Ummm, Ais, why are you holding my hand?"

Ais looked down to find Bell staring at her with wide eyes. The Sword Princess felt her cheeks start to heat up. "No reason," was her reply.

She stood up and started to leave the tent, Haruhime giggling from behind as she followed. The two found Lili waiting for them. After a quick admonishment, the prum set them to work. Haruhime was to help with breakfast, while Ais was to go collect firewood. The two adventurers nodded, and before they left, Ais tapped Haruhime on the shoulder.

"Thank you for talking to me," said Ais, looking at the ground, "I know that I'm not good at it…"

A second later, Ais felt something start to brush her leg. She found the renard's tail brushing against her. Looking up, she was met with the Enchantenko's beautiful smile.

"I am overjoyed that you enjoyed our conversation Lady Wallenstein; I hope to have many more of them," said the Fox Princess. Haruhime then hurried over to assist Mikoto and Chigusa.

"Good morning Ais," came the sleepy voice of Lefiya.

The Sword Princess turned to find Lefiya dressed and ready. The elf stretched and yawned as she left the tent, an early morning smile on her face.

"As cute as usual," said Elwin, also leaving his tent.

Lefiya made a point of stomping on his foot as she walked away, flustered.

"What'd I say?" asked Elwin, trotting after her, "It was a compliment!"

Ais watched on before she began getting to the task presented to her. She walked around the burrow and the area just outside their campsite and gathered as much spare wood as she could find. She found wood big and small to bring with her. When she thought she had found a sufficient amount, she returned to the others.

"Where should I put this?" she asked.

Lili, who was supervising other activities, turned to point off to the side. Her eyes were met with a tower of logs.

"Ummm, Miss Wallenstein…you didn't have to find that much…" said the prum, flabbergasted.

"I wanted to help," replied Ais.

She put her logs down and started using her Desperate to trim the excess twigs and branches. Her work was meticulous and thorough. As she finished each log, she passed it over to the team in charge of making breakfast. She was so focused on the task in front of her that it wasn't until Bell shook her shoulder that she realized breakfast was ready.

The party sat around, enjoying the food. At the entrance, Urashima and Otohime were on guard. When everyone finished, Lili gestured for everyone to gather around. Urashima and Otohime walked over and joined the circle. When she sat down, the former Princess turned her head, and Urashima began braiding it away from her face.

"Today is the battle with Amphisbaena," began Lili, "This might become the most difficult challenge on our expedition. Lili hopes you are all prepared."

Lili faced Welf, "Is the Undine Cloth ready?"

Welf nodded, "And everyone's weapons are in tip-top shape."

"Good," Lili turned to face the assembled party, "We will leave for the Water Capital in one hour; that will give us enough time to position ourselves. Lili wants Master Bell, Miss Wallenstein, Miss Ryuu, and Miss Lefiya focused on crowd control and dealing with the fringe monsters," the prum turned to the newest adventurers, "You three will be in charge of guarding Lili and the other supporters. The rest of the party fights the Monster Rex."

"Ummm, Lili," began Bell, "Doesn't that seem a little risky? I know we did it for Goliath, but don't we want the strongest adventurers to face off with the Amphisbaena?"

"I must agree with Bell," added Ryuu. The other high-level members, except Aisha, voiced their agreement.

The amazon smiled, tossing her hair back, "Sorry folks, but this fight is personal," her grin shifted to predatory, "It's time we had a rematch."

Those adventurers who had been left behind during Bell and Ryuu's fall to the deep floors nodded. Their faces were grim and determined. They wanted this fight so bad they could taste it. For many, this would be an actual test to see how they had grown and changed.

Holding that determination in their mind, the group soon set out for the Water Capital. When they arrived, they did a quick march to get to the spawning area of the great beast.  The top-tier members started to spread out and dispatch any lingering monsters. Lili, Haruhime, and Cassandra set up a kind of command area, with Urashima, Otohime, and Elwin arrayed around them.

That left Aisha, Mikoto, Daphne, Ouka, Chigusa, and Welf to face down the Amphisbaena. Welf had magic swords at the ready, while the others faced down the wall in front of them. Many were recalling memories of their past battle. How they had almost been destroyed by the monster Rex, and how terrified they had been at the time. The hour passed in an eerie silence. The only sound being the others destroying the monsters that had already been there.

Then, they heard it. The creature's great roar reverberated like a shockwave from below. It was only then that Ais asked a question, "How are you going to lure the Amphisbaena up here?"

Lili put down her pack and withdrew a brown pouch, "With Miss Naaza and Mister Urashima's newest item creation. This pouch is filled with things useful for attracting monsters. It was created based on the Dea Saint's own concoction."

True enough, the adventurers felt the great beast start to rise. Eventually, the great pool they were waiting in front of bubbled and frothed. Suddenly, out popped one shape, followed by another. The beast's great twin heads bit and snapped at each other. Its body and scales shimmered in the light, reflecting off the water. The heads swung left and right, nostrils flaring. Then, they alighted on the little prum girl. Their eyes focused on her, and as one, the heads roared their challenge.

"Mister Welf, Miss Haruhime!" shouted Lili.

Welf brought out a small magic sword and swung down. As he did so, ice exploded out, and the great pool froze over.

"Alright, you lot, let's get this started!" roared Aisha. The other adventurers jumped out onto the frozen water. Unlike the last time, there was no fear or hesitancy. They only had one goal, to win.

"Wither. That power and vessel. Slim wealth and broken promises. Until the crow caws deliver misfortune and weakness. -Wither. Strip away divinity within this body. Spell their name in red and cast them below. Sleep towards the north; may the winds of ill will wash over you. -Wither!” sang Enchantenko. This was her third magic, her newest spell. Around her gather a smog of purple miasma. She opened her mouth, "Kowareta Kushi!"

As if pushed by a great wind, the miasma bellowed forward. It enveloped the Amphisbaena and expanded itself to encompass the entirety of its being. As soon the purple cloud touched the Monster Rex, it seemed to become weighed down. Its eyes lost some of their lustre, and its roar sounded less ferocious. This was Haruhime's magic at work. Her third spell, a level-down she could apply to her opponents. The only problem was, she couldn't cast her other magics while the miasma was in effect. Bad luck or good luck, but never at the same time.

Now that their opponent was weakened, the expedition party was better able to begin their attack in earnest. Before the beast came crashing down on the ice and fractured it into small islands, Mikoto was able to jump up onto the beast's long body. As she ran, she dragged her blade behind her. A great red line was carved on the beast.

Even weakened, though, this was still the Amphisbaena. With a toss of one mighty head, the samurai girl went flying off to the side. She crashed into a wall and slid to the floor. Her head swam with pain. The water dragon's other head then let loose an incredible streak of flame at its foes. The adventurers scattered, trying to dodge around the great flames in front of them.

While they were distracted, the right head surged forward. It snapped at the supporters, identifying them as the weakest targets.

"Give me strength, charging Bull. Make me the one who charges forward to protect my allies. I summon thee: Golden Bull, Datauri!"

Elwin finished his chant, the characteristic glow forming around him. The right head of Amphisbaena released mist as it charged. It prepared for a magical blow that never came. Instead, Elwin planted his feet and combined his enhanced strength with his mind load skill. The resulting haymaker to the side of the dragon's head was enough to knock it off course. While the supporters started to relocate, Urashima and Otohime took their chance to get in a couple cuts and hits on the beast. However, just as quickly as it arrived, the beast withdrew.

Amphisbaena ducked underwater, hoping to catch its prey off-guard. It was not expecting such fierce opponents. It retreated to its submerged domain and left a series of iceberg islands in its wake. This left the expedition party in silence as they waited for the creature to resurface.

"How are they going to know?" asked Lefiya while she fought off raider fish and blue crabs.

Ryuu smiled, "Trust the Black Crow."

Mikoto focused then and cast out her senses. She was almost hit with an overload. The cavern began filling more and more with different monsters. The mark of the Amphisbaena was virtually lost in the mess. Instead of panicking, though, she doubled down. She thought of where her target entered the water and tracked it from there.

"It is coming for Lady Daphne!"

The red-haired adventurer jumped out of the way in the nick of time. The iceberg she was standing on exploded in a rain of snow and sleet. The Amphisbaena surged out of the water and began shooting off large tendrils of blue fire at the adventurers.

Bell watched on, worried about what his companions were facing. Because of that, though, he was almost hit by a barrage of harpy feathers. Thankfully, Ais had been watching. The Sword Princess cut through the projectiles before hopping up to slice at the monsters. They exploded in clouds of dust as she jumped around, the walls acting as her springboards.

When she landed, she turned to Bell, "You have to pay attention, Bell. I know you're worried, but trust in your friends."

Then, she was off running to the next group of monsters. Usually, crowd control on a large group of monsters on the lower floors would be extremely difficult. If it was just four people, it would be nearly impossible. However, in the case of this expedition, three of the four adventurers were speed-based front-liners. Ryuu, Ais, and Bell were able to dart around and efficiently destroy any monster that started to gather towards their friends. Crystal Turtles, Aqua Serpents, Blue Crabs, and Crystaroth Urchins all fell to the top-tier adventurers. And in the case of the larger swarms, like the schools of raider fish, Lefiya Viridis was there to blast them apart with her magic.

Overall, the sidelines were easily controlled. All that left was the battle in front. The great Monster Rex raged in the water, and the walls blazed with flames. Slowly, Hestia Familia and their allies made progress against the Amphisbaena, but the dragon also left its own damage. Even a level down, the beast was formidable.

All the front-line fighters bore scorch marks, and Mikoto had a broken rib from when she had been tossed. Even in the backline, Otohime had taken the brunt of another charge at the supporters. Her shoulder was bleeding and dislocated. She was forced to drop her Bisento and draw her new unnamed katana.

"Heavenly light, once rejected. Merciful arms that save my shallow self. Rescue my miserable companions in place of my words that cannot reach them. Oh sunlight, may you beat back ruin," chanted Cassandra. As she finished, a healing aura washed over Mikoto and Chigusa, who had been standing close together. When she finished that spell, she began chanting her next. She wouldn't cast it until Lili told her so, but she would prep it to have at the ready for now.

The commander herself studied the battle, looking for any opportunities. Ideally, she wanted to find a way to remove one of the heads. If the powerful mist that diffused magic was removed, they could use Aisha's spell to end this battle. However, if the flame head was removed, the most dangerous offensive was gone.

Lili watched Welf use his wind blade to redirect a bout of flames. With his new magic sword, Welf became their perfect counter. With him bearing the brunt of the fire, Mikoto tracking the beast underwater, and Haruhime constantly reapplying the level-down, they would win. The only problem was that they might sustain some significant injuries in the process. Lili studied Welf's movements and saw how a particular gust of wind seemed to send the flames back to the sender.

Then Lili thought of her moment. However, it would require perfect timing and precise teamwork.

"Mister Welf, ready your magic! Miss Mikoto, help Mister Ouka get to a high vantage point!" called Lili.

The three fighters snapped to attention, all of them moving to start their parts. Mikoto began weaving her magic while Ouka stayed nearby and provided defence. Welf had figured out Lili's plan, so he withdrew just a bit, needing to focus. He wasn't a mage, but time in Carien had given him a lot of practice with his accuracy and timing. To compensate, Lili had Urashima and Otohime join the advance team. They worked with Daphne and Chigusa to keep Amphisbaena at bay.

In an excruciating window of pressured time, Haruhime watched on in silence. She was always vigilant, reapplying the level down spell whenever it wore off. That didn't stop the echoes of worry, though. When Mikoto was sent into the wall, she flinched in pain. When Bell almost got nailed by the Harpy feathers, her heart stopped. Even now, for whatever reason, her attention was distracted into three parts. One part was watching the battle, which involved using her magic and tossing out potions when needed. The second part was drawn to Bell, naturally. She loved watching the way he fought. The third part was drawn to her dear friend Mikoto. She was still trying to figure out why.

However, now all her attention was focused on Mikoto grabbing Ouka and dragging him into the air. It was only with her new enhanced level four strength that she could bring the big guy up with her. When Amphisbaena saw this, it aimed one head sky high. As it opened its maw to belch out fire, Welf struck.

"Burn out, illegal work! Will-o-Wisp!"

There was a coughing sound as Amphisbaena had its own flame reflected back at it. However, there was no damage done. Unfortunately, the Amphisbaena was immune to its own attacks. But the ignis fatuus was enough to make it stumble. Now dazed, the great beast shook its massive head back and forth.

That was the moment Mikoto threw Ouka towards the ground. The brawny adventurer came down roaring, his battle-axe raised above his head. Mikoto's aim wasn't perfect, though. Ouka's axe cut deep on the way down, but one jolting moment from Amphisbaena meant that Ouka only bit halfway through the neck. He hung in the empty air, holding on for dear life. His feet tried to find purchase on the beast, but they kept slipping on the beast's slimy scales. How he survived, he did not know. All he understood was that if he let go or allowed himself to get thrown away by the dragon, he would die. Unfortunately, his fingers were slipping.

"Ouka!" screamed Chigusa. She took out her collapsing spear and took aim. This was Hitoka Chigusa's one true talent. The one thing she had over everyone else was her pinpoint accuracy. Sighting down the shaft of the spear, she threw with all her might. It flew through the air, and Chigusa's skill held true. The pointed end bit deep into the Monster Rex's skin, giving Ouka a place to rest his feet.

Using the haft as a jumping point, the big man pushed. He was able to push off and fly up into the air. He wrenched his battle-axe free from the monster's flesh as he went up. Then, before gravity took effect, he hung in the air for one terrifying moment. Most adventurers would retreat then. They would back up and take stock of their surroundings. Ouka was not that, though. He was tired of falling behind and being a passive force. He was going to protect his friends with every fibre of his being. So, Ouka went up, and then he came back down swinging. With this second hit, the beast's head came off. It fell with a resounding crash to the water. Ouka fell with it until the dragon's other head grabbed him in its maw. It shook the big adventurer like a doll and then threw him into the wall. He crashed and fell to the floor, unconscious.

Otohime ran by to scoop him up while everyone else redoubled their efforts. Even if the creature's primary source of damage was gone, its defences were still formidable. Everyone prepared themselves for a war of attrition, except the Amphisbaena. It ducked underwater, and Mikoto prepared to track it. She quickly realized that…

"It's heading for the waterfall!"

Everyone moved to get out of the way of the oncoming tsunami. They thought that they had outsmarted the beast, learning from the last time. What they didn't account for was what would be pulled out of the water. A great horde of monsters was carried on the resulting tidal wave. They launched themselves at the adventurers, and all hell broke loose.

"Master Bell, Miss Ryuu, Miss Wallenstein, Miss Lefiya!" called Lili as she fired bolt after bolt into monsters.

Drudged up from the depths were mermaids and mermen, Kelpies, Afancs, Dodoras, Lamias, Light Quartz, Crystal Turtles, and every other creature that the Water Capital had to offer. Some flopped around, but many others took to the offensive.

The four top-tier adventurers drew themselves close. Their added might gave the others time to gather themselves. Welf switched the side of his blade and began bringing his own fire to bear. He turned monsters to ash, doing anything in his power to buy the others time to regroup. Lili watched him go to work.

"Lady Otohime, please leave Sir Ouka with me!" cried out Haruhime. Otohime nodded her gratitude, tossing the big man into the renard's waiting arms. She then jumped to join Urashima. Cassandra stood with Haruhime at the center of the group, the two of them providing what support they could. They both held magical staves, swinging around to bonk the occasional monster. Lili stood with them, looking from Welf's magic sword and then to Amphisbaena sitting in the water. Ryuu and Ais had taken it upon themselves to distract the creature while the others handled the monsters.

They were starting to become overwhelmed, though. Chigusa had to drop and take a knee after a vicious serpent bite. Elwin got smacked aside by a Lamia tail. Even Aisha got pinched by a Blue Crab while she was distracted. There were just so many monsters…

Lili looked at Welf, then the Amphisbaena, then the water, and then at her arm-mounted crossbow. She smiled. She threw her pack down and began digging inside.

"Lili needs time!" cried the prum.

"You heard her, everyone protect Lili!" screamed Bell, having the utmost confidence that she would save them.

He, and the other high-level adventurers, were doing ok but the level threes, and even the level fours, were about to fall. Otohime was slowed down the most, her dislocated shoulder a significant hindrance. Urashima fought frantically to cover for her, his face pained in worry. Not to mention, Ouka was still unconscious, and more and more monsters started to slip past to the supporters. Seeing how much danger she was in, Mikoto began cutting a path to Haruhime.

Just as a monster was about to stab her in the back, Lili thrust her hand out and smiled, "Lili has found it!"

She turned to find the aqua serpent behind her exploding into dust. Bell was standing there, dagger raised.

The boy smiled, "You ready, Lili?"

The prum nodded. She took out her special magic bolts, and she placed one in the ready position. She didn't have much time, and she would have to make sure this shot counted. She took aim around her friends, knowing that they would keep her safe.

"Clear out of the way!"

Ais and Ryuu heard her and jumped away instantly. Ryuu trusted the voice of her commander, and Ais only heard Finn. They watched the bolt streak past them. As it raced forward, the Amphisbaena ducked out of the way. The bolt plonked harmlessly into the water. It turned to look at Lili, almost sneering with its monster face. Lili smirked, though. As she did, the bolt erupted. A shockwave branched out through the water. The Amphisbaena jolted this way and that. Then the shockwave followed the water acting as a conductor. The expedition party began hopping to higher ground. Mikoto grabbed Haruhime by the waist, Daphne doing the same with Cassandra. Both supporters blushed as it happened. Bell scooped up Lili, just in time. The horde of monsters below was immediately hit with magic lightning, shocking them into submission.

Lili began rapid-firing electric bolts, keeping the conductive stream going. Lightning bolt after lightning bolt began to surge through the water. Monsters exploded into dust.

Most of them died, but not Amphisbaena. Then Lili turned to their secret weapons, "Sword Princess, Master Bell!"

Ais jumped up and placed her feet on the wall. She pushed off as she screamed, "Tempest!"

The wind answered her call.

At the same time, the sound of a bell rang through the dungeon. White, purifying light gathered at the fist of the boy. The Amphisbaena understood what was about to happen and opened its mouth, letting loose the anti-magic mist. A shield of red surrounded it, ready to dispel all magical attacks. What it forgot, though, was that all things could burn.

"Oh no, you don't!" cried out Welf, raising his magic blade, "Hii Tatsumaki!"

A tornado of fire answered. It raged around the Amphisbaena, cancelling out the magical mist. Welf could only make it last for a couple seconds, though. Then, his blade fell to the ground. His face contorted in exhaustion.

Bell raised his hand, done charging as much as he dared.

Ais zoomed closer to her target.

"Firebolt!"

"Lil Rafaga!"

The two attacks met the Monster Rex, and the resounding boom sent everyone flying. A white mist settled over the battlefield, obscuring their vision. When they dared to look, all that was left in the cavern was the Sword Princess flapping around in the water. Everyone looked on in confusion until a little elf remembered…

"Miss Ais can't swim!"

While everyone else was still confused, Bell jumped forward, diving towards the water. He swam out and hooked an arm underneath her chest. One of the skills he had learned this year involved swimming. He began dragging her back to shore.

The second she felt him, Ais's panic disappeared. At least, her panic about the water evaporated. It was replaced with a different kind of panic.

'Wait… Bell's hand is near my chest,' thought Ais, 'wait…why does that matter to me? Why am I nervous about it? Bell is so close!'

Ais dared to look at Bell's determined face as he pulled her through the water. The sight made her blush. 'When did he start looking so manly?'

The two made the return to shore to find everyone waiting for them. Cassandra was casting her magic on the assembled group, healing their injuries. Meanwhile, Haruhime and Lili bustled about collecting magic stones and drop items. The rest took the time to recuperate, with Ryuu and Aisha standing guard.

"Daphne! I'm ok!" said Cassandra, blushing. In response, Daphne narrowed her eyes.

"You need to rest as much as everyone else," said Daphne. She pressed one of Naaza's double high potions into Cassandra's hands, "Now drink this."

Next to them, Chigusa nursed Ouka back into consciousness. When he heard that he was the only one to pass out, he grew very angry with himself. Thankfully, Chigusa reminded him of how incredible he looked cutting off the dragon's head.

"But I was only able to do it because of you," replied Ouka. He laid a hand on her shoulder, "Thank you, Chigusa. You saved my life." Then he smiled. Chigusa nearly fainted.

"Please, Lady Haruhime, I assure you that I'm fine," stammered Mikoto, Haruhime flittering around her. She was supposed to be collecting magic stones, but she had taken a break from that to play nurse.

"Miss Mikoto, you crashed into a wall! Please, at least let me provide a potion!"

The two then continued their awkward dance around their feelings. Neither was willing to concede what their hearts were starting to tell them, though.

Next to them, Urashima had his own moment of panic, "Please, Lady Otohime, let me help you set your shoulder."

Otohime rolled her eyes, "If you insist."

Urashima then tried to get a firm grip on Otohime's shoulder without causing her any pain. His hands kept shifting, unsure how to proceed. After a minute of inaction, Otohime sighed. She stood up and walked over to a nearby rocky outcrop.

"Princess…what are you doing?" asked Urashima.

Otohime took a deep breath and then jammed her shoulder against the rock. She snapped her arm back into place.

"By the Gods!" she screamed, tears in her eyes.

"Otohime!" shouted Urashima, who jumped to his feet.

Between laboured breaths, Otohime said, "You were taking too long."

Finally, the boy draped a dry salamander wool cloak over a girl's shoulders.

"Are you ok, Ais?"

Ais nodded, her body trembling, "It's less the cold and more…"

"The fear?" answered Bell.

Ais nodded, looking at the ground, "I know it's weak…"

Bell shrugged, "Honestly, seeing that there's something you can't do makes me feel better."

"It does?" Ais tilted her head.

Bell nodded, "Helps me remember that you're more than just a powerful adventurer," Bell looked away then, his ears turning pink, "Besides, seeing you now…is kinda cute."

Ais heard his words and remembered the feeling of his arm wrapped around her. She didn't respond, and the two sat there in comfortable silence.

Watching over them, Welf and Lili continued shovelling magic stones and drop items into sacks. As they went deeper into the Dungeon, Chigusa and Cassandra would start to carry their own supporter bags, helping to maximize the amount of loot they brought back with them. This was the beginning of that transition.

"You know, I wouldn't mind handling the rest of this if you want to go talk to Bell…" began Welf.

Lili frowned but shook her head, "Lili knows when she is beat," the prum sighed, "Lili will just have to be happy with her current position…"

"You know, if it came down to it, I'm sure Bell would pick you over her every time. You'll always be his first partner, right?"

Lili nodded, still melancholic, "But it's not the same…"

"No, I suppose not…"

The two continued their work in silence.

"Are you alright, Elwin?" asked Lefiya. As a full-time backline mage, she had no injuries to speak of after this encounter. Elwin, however, was nursing some bruised knuckles and a damaged torso.

"Yeah, just scratched myself up when I punched the damn thing," said Elwin.

Lefiya grabbed his hand, "Then allow me to help," she closed her eyes, "I wish upon the name of Wishe. Ancestors of the forest, proud brethren. Answer my call and come to the plains. Connecting bonds, the pledge of paradise. Turn the circle and dance around. Come, ring of fairies. Please - give me strength."

She then followed this chant with another, and a small magic circle formed at her feet. A green light washed over Elwin, and the scratches and bruises on his hand started to fade.

Lefiya smiled, "There, all better! I was able to copy Lady Riveria's healing magic to help!"

Elwin looked at his hand and blushed, "Not done yet, though…"

Lefiya tilted her head, "What do you mean?"

"…You have to kiss it better…" mumbled Elwin, daring to hope.

When Lefiya didn't respond, he started to pull his hand away, "Sorry, dumb request, I know…"

Except, he was almost pulled off his feet. He felt a flash of a warm sensation on his knuckles, and then his hand fell limply to his side. He brought it up to stare at it. He then looked at Lefiya, who had turned away.

"If you'll excuse me…I must be going!"

The little elf marched off, Elwin watching her go. He wore a dumbfounded look on his face.

***

Up in Orario, three Goddesses were having drinks. Hestia had finished work early, and Hephaistos insisted on walking her back to the Twilight Manor. When they arrived, Loki invited the Goddess of the Forge to stay and have drinks. Her reasoning was that a third party would stop Loki and Hestia from killing each other. Hephaistos agreed.

Loki, who had drunk much less than the others, looked over the rim of her glass, "So, Itty-Bitty, what's going on with that kid of yours…I would've thought that he'd level up in his time outside Orario."

Hestia made a dismissive gesture, "You know how it is. Hard to find stuff challenging enough in the countryside."

Loki made a humming sound, "That hasn't stopped him before, though. Unless your precious Bell isn't as great as people say…"

"Hey! My Bell is amazing! The only reason his growth stopped is because…" Hestia trailed off.

"Oh, so you do know why he grows so fast?" Loki leaned forward, "Alright then, spill it."

Hestia looked to Hephaistos for help. The Goddess of the Forge looked her in the eyes, "If there's a problem, we can only help if we know."

Hestia groaned, hating that she had allowed herself to have been tricked. 'Some Goddess I turned out to be…'

"Ok," began Hestia, "So it's like this…"

And Hestia told the story of Liaris Freese. She explained Bell's extraordinary growth and the reason behind it. The two Goddess's watched in rapt attention. Hestia then moved onto what happened and why it had stopped. As she explained the connection to Ais Wallenstein, Loki scowled.

"Like I'm going to let him have my Aizu!" said Loki, who swung her glass back and forth, "And another thing! Where does he get off blaming my Ais! That doesn't make any sense!"

Hestia shook her head, "Doesn't matter if it makes sense, Loki, that's not how emotions work. Besides, it's not like Bell is doing this on purpose," Hestia shrugged, "Emotions are messy. So, Bell has to untangle this on his own as much as possible."

Hephaistos smiled, "You really have grown, haven't you?"

Hestia pouted, "Are you saying you didn't believe me till now?"

Hephaistos shrugged, happy to continue teasing her friend. That is until Hestia smirked at her.

"By the way, what was it you were talking to Welf about before the expedition anyway?"

Hephaistos turned the colour of her hair, "Nothing that concerns you…"

"Uh uh uh," began Loki, "Welfy's part of itty-bitty's Familia. What you do to him, she has a right to know!"

Shocked at Loki's trickery, Hephaistos sank into the couch. She buried her face into her hands and made a controlled squeaking sound.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" asked Hestia, cupping her ear.

Hephaistos dropped her hands and moved her lips.

"I'm sorry, couldn't hear you?" added Loki.

"I said, I gave him a good luck kiss!" shouted Hephaistos. At that exact moment, Raul poked his head through the door.

"Excuse me, Lady Loki, Finn was wondering if you had a chance to review the documents…"

The adventurer trailed off under the glare of the smithing Goddess. Hephaistos stood up and marched over. She grabbed the High Rookie by his collar and brought him close, "You breathe one word of what you heard outside this room, and Tsubaki uses you for smithing practice, got it?"

Raul nodded but then scrambled away as soon as possible. In his fear, he searched for his girlfriend and buried himself in her arms, "But I didn't hear anything!"

Not totally understanding what happened but still finding him endearing, Aki petted his hair. Then she said, "I know, just take it easy, Raul. I got you. I'll protect you."

***

Back in the dungeon, the party advanced. The original plan was to rest and return to floor twenty-four to properly tackle the next floors tomorrow. However, they had defeated Amphisbaena with no significant injuries, and Lili's electric arrow had also cleared out many monsters. The way was open for them to continue through the Water Capital. As they marched, Lili scanned her map of the twenty-seventh floor, looking for a campsite.

"Lili believes we should take a left…right…here!"

The party followed her orders and entered a large cavern. Thankfully, there was no water to be found inside. Everyone began setting up camp, with Bell taking the first watch. Ais watched him and noticed how he seemed to stare at every pool of water. She walked up to him.

"Are you afraid of the monsters?" she asked.

Bell shook his head, "No…actually, I was hoping to see…."

"To see?" prompted Ais.

"A Xenos," replied Bell, "Named Mari. She's supposed to live around here…"

Ais nodded. Then she tilted her head, "Bell, would you prefer I not be around when we meet with the Xenos?"

Bell flinched, "Was I obvious?"

Ais shook her head, "No, but I've been thinking about it," Ais frowned, "Even if I want to apologize…I need to make sure they're comfortable first…also," continued Ais, who was turning red, "I wanted to say…thank you…"

Bell seemed caught out, "Thank you? For what?"

"For saving me from the water…" finished Ais. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze before turning back to the campsite.

***

Finally, deep in the desert of the thirtieth floor, a monster paced. Her spies had informed her of her quarries' progress. Things were progressing smoothly. Next to her, a great shifting mass of vegetation rumbled. She nodded along.

"Yes, no need to complain, you'll get what you want," said the monster, which seemed to be a variant of a War Shadow.

"Want revenge…against…the rabbit…"

This Xenos had not perfected the art of speech. For that, though, it was still one of the most cunning among the New Faction. This Faction called themselves the Sun Seekers, for they would bring the Xenos into the light. Their king would lead them, but this large lump of moss would create the plans to reach their goal.

"Just make sure that your plan works," continued the War Shadow. Her form was translucent but more solid than a regular monster's. Her voice came out like a ghastly wail, "I want them separated…. especially the little elf girl. She's mine," a large smile graced her features, "She'll be all mine…" her eyes turned manic, "I'll make her just like me…and then she'll be mine…"

With that, the Banshee cackled with glee.

Character Profile:

Sanjouno Haruhime

Level Two

Status:

Strength: I 98 Defence: H 120 Dexterity: H 116 Agility: H 130 Magic: F 436

Mage: H

Magic:

Uchide No Kozuichi: Level boost magic that can only be used on a single target, after which an interval occurs before it can be cast again. It cannot be used on the caster.

Kokone: A special enchant magic that creates a maximum of nine tails on the user depending on their limit. The user adds the effects of a second magic they chant connect to each of the tails to multiply its effects, such as increasing the number of people Uchide no Kozuchi can be used on.

Kowareta Kushi: Level degrading magic that can only be used on a single target, after which an interval occurs before it can be cast again. It cannot be used on the caster.

Skills:

Mikuzumenohou: Increases the effects of the user's magic and improves mind usage.

Protected Princess: Provides a minor passive Status boost to those fighting around the user.

Chapter Text

Day three of the Dungeon expedition started much like the day before. The allied Familias gathered to have breakfast, each performing their assigned tasks. Ais knew that she was no good at most of the typical campsite activities, so she decided to continue gathering burnable materials. This was much harder to find in the Water Capital, but thankfully the Dungeon created a type of burnable coral. Just like yesterday, Lili looked on and commented that she didn't need to get nearly that much, but Ais didn't mind. She wasn't good for much; she would do her best at what she could.

As the group ate breakfast, Daphne and Cassandra stood guard at the mouth of the cave. As they started to clean up, Lili gathered everyone around them.

"Today, the party will be moving to floor twenty-eight, the desert swamp," began the supporter, "If Lili has studied the maps correctly, there is a stable path we can follow to get through."

Ais nodded, "It's the best way forward. Everyone has to be careful to avoid the quicksand. It will suck you in, and then you'll die," she looked over the group, "Stick to the path."

Aisha chortled, "Oh, the path, you say? You know, there is another way?"

Ais narrowed her gaze, "No, there isn't."

Aisha snorted, "Yes, there is," she pointed to herself, "Hermes Familia keeps a set of boats hidden near the entrance to the floor. We can use them to ride on the water."

Both veteran adventurers turned to Lili, who would make the final decision. The prum rubbed her chin in thought, "If the party takes to the water, we will get through quicker," she eyes the amazon, "Any dangers to the boats?"

It's Ais that responds, "The monsters can attack us. The long necks, hemahs, petsuchos, and will-o-wisps will be waiting for us. We will be… we'll be…" she turned to Lefiya, "What is the expression when one is in danger and can't do anything?"

Sitting next to Lefiya, Elwin responded, "We'll be sitting ducks?"

Ais nodded, "We will be sitting ducks."

"These boats move better than you think, Sword Princess," responded Aisha, "and the less time we spend in that swamp, the better. Too many dangers we can't see."

"Lili sees the merits to both options. What do you think, Master Bell?"

Bell hummed and looked between the two women. His gaze settled on Aisha, "The boats will take us through safely?"

Aisha shrugged, "As safe as anything is in the Dungeon."

Bell nodded, "I'm sorry, Ais, but I think we should trust Aisha."

Ais sat there for a moment, her face expressionless. She nodded once, "Ok then."

The Sword Princess stood up and prepared her equipment. Everyone watched her go before looking at Bell. After scrutinizing him for a moment, everyone else left for their assigned tasks—everyone except Welf. The smith walked up to Bell and gestured for him to follow. The two brothers walked to a separate section of the cave, where Welf crossed his arms.

"You know, might have been better to use a different word there," said Welf.

"What do you mean?" Had Bell done something wrong?

"You said trust Bell. As if you didn't trust Ais," replied the smith, "I know you two are still working on some things, but you might want to consider what you say."

Bell looked down, "But I don't know if I do…"

Welf frowned but said nothing else. The two left and rejoined the party. As they were about to leave, Ais walked up to Lili.

"Since we're going down to a floor most of you haven't properly explored, should I go in the front?"

The question was innocent enough, without stepping on Lili's toes as commander. The prum considered it for a second before nodding.

"Miss Wallenstein does have the most experience out of everyone here," responded Lili, "Lili will go with your judgement for this."

Ais thanked her before walking off to join Urashima and Otohime. While the bodyguard scowled, Otohime greeted her with open arms. She started chatting with Ais, who responded as best she could. Eventually, the Sword Princess smiled.

Otohime smiled back, "Did something pleasant happen?"

Ais shook her head, "No, you just remind me of Tiona. You have the same high energy and spirits," she turned to Urashima, "And you remind me of Tione, always looking after everyone."

Urashima's scowl turned into a frown. Just who was this woman?

Before they left, Bell walked up to Ais, hands clenched in front of him.

"Ummm, Ais? I just wanted to say-"

Before he could finish, though, Ais started to lead the party out of the cave. She didn't even bother looking him in the eye as she left. This meant that the whole party was able to throw Bell their looks of pity as they went. When Ryuu passed him, he took up his position in the rear-guard. The elf patted him on the shoulder as she walked by.

"She will come around. For now, just give her some space," was the elf's words of wisdom.

"I don't get it, though…she told me I didn't have to forgive her…," said Bell.

Ryuu shook her head, "Still though, to then plainly admit that you don't trust her in the Dungeon? That is a painful reminder, and it was not tactfully done."

"What would you have said?" replied Bell with a tilt of his head.

Ryuu shrugged, "Something along the lines of, 'I think Miss Aisha's way is quicker,' or 'We should be ok with these strong adventurers in the boats.'"

As the two talked, they cut down monsters that attacked the back of the party. A raging kelpie was cut in half. A couple of blue crabs got crushed into monster dust. A harpy exploded to a firebolt.

As they walked, Ryuu reached down to pick up a harpy feather, "Bell, you probably had a reason to go with Aisha's plan, yes?"

At Bell's nod, she continued, "Well, when you said you trust Aisha, you implied that you didn't trust Miss Wallenstein at all. Even saying you trusted Aisha MORE would've been better because it would imply that you had some trust in the Sword Princess. Or just stating the reason that you held in your head. Trust was a poor word."

As Bell pondered her words, Ryuu continued to feel her heartbeat. Confusion clouded her judgement constantly. Bell was Bell, and she loved him. But this conversation about trust gnawed at her. Did she trust him? In his family was the same bloodline of Silence, Alfia. Now, Ryuu knew that Bell wasn't evil, but it did mean that he was connected to Hera Familia. And if he was connected to Hera Familia, then maybe he was connected to Zeus Familia? Looking at him now, Ryuu realized that she didn't know who Bell was…

As if he sensed her looking at him, Bell raised his head. When their eyes met, he blushed and looked away. Then he almost tripped over a root. Ryuu smiled then, for Bell was still Bell. However, even if she smiled, part of her was still anxious.

At the front of the party, there was a lull in monster attacks. This was possibly due to the presence of the Sword Princess. Her overwhelming strength and aura kept many of the weaker monsters at bay. That isn't to say that there were none, but there were still many less than what Otohime and Urashima had grown used to.

The three marched on ahead. Mikoto had moved to the middle of the party to better use her skill in case of an ambush. So, Ais was left with the Princess and her bodyguard. Urashima kept good on his promise not to forgive her, as he kept taking the time to glare over at Ais. Not that she noticed, though. Her thoughts were preoccupied with Bell's words earlier. Obviously, she didn't expect him to trust with everything, but this was the Dungeon. When it comes to expeditions, she is the most experienced adventurer here, with the possible exception of Ryuu. So, why did Bell not trust her?

"Hey, Ura! Look at this water flower I found!" said Otohime. Cupped in her hands was a flower with deep blue petals and a rosy pink center. The Princess held it up to her head, "Can you tie it in my hair later?"

Urashima smiled as he nodded, "Yes, I believe it would look wonderful on you."

"Doesn't everything?" responded Otohime, frowning.

The ninja bodyguard rolled his eyes, "No, for example, you look horrible in dark colours and most western-based fashion and outfits. We've been over this."

Otohime pouted, "No need to be rude," she began tucking the flower away, "At least I try wearing different things. Do you own anything besides dark black cloth and battle robes?"

Urashima scowled, but his cheeks turned pink, "I do! I just prefer not to wear it!"

Otohime giggled and then walked up to pat his head, "I know."

Ais frowned, a deep sense of jealousy settling in. Why couldn't she be like this with Bell?

"How'd you two get so close?" asked Ais.

Ura frowned, "Excuse me, but that's none of yo-"

"We were both alone, and then we found each other. It's easy to fall in love when there's only one other person," Otohime looked over, smiled, and grabbed Urashima's hand, "That said, I think it only sped up the process. I would've ended up loving him regardless."

Ais frowned, "But you two are so different… doesn't it cause problems?"

Urashima stood there in silence, and then he sighed and shrugged, "It does. It means that sometimes we clash in our approaches, but there's less of a difference than you think," Urashima marched forward, "Otohime wants what's best for the people. I would like to think that I'm the same."

Otohime considered his words for a moment and then turned back to Ais, "I think that's only part of it," Otohime smirked, "Another one of our many disagreements," she turned back to Ais, "Love isn't about taking the best parts of someone. It's about taking the worst parts, the parts that make you want to tear your hair out, and then saying, 'I'd keep them.' You have to love someone in spite of their faults, or else, do you really love them?"

When she finished her little speech, Otohime made to keep moving forward. She stopped when she noticed Ura staring at her.

"What is it?" asked the Princess, blushing.

"I just fell for you all over again."

Otohime turned a dark red, "You can't…you shouldn't…Ura!"

Ais watched the two adventurers fall into light bickering. As she did, she pondered the conversation she just heard. Does Bell love her, despite everything? He doesn't trust her, so that isn't a good sign. However, the other question is, does she love him?

These thoughts plagued her as she came to the stairs leading to the twenty-eighth floor. When she arrived, with Otohime and Urashima, the three of them waited for the rest of the party to join them. Ais watched the two of them continue their flirting, hoping to take notes about what she could do with Bell. Even if she didn't love him…she wanted to find out for herself. She wasn't going to wait around, though.

***

Before they left for the expedition, Tione made a special point of pulling Ais aside one day. The Amazon took Ais back to her room and sat her down. Tione faced the Sword Princess, arms crossed over her chest.

"Are you ready to do what it takes?" asked Tione.

Ais tilted her head, "Ready to do what?"

Tione rolled her eyes, "To fight for your man?"

"My…man?"

Tione nodded, "The March Hare. You aren't the only one interested in the boy!"

"March Hare?"

This conversation just kept getting more and more confusing to Ais. What in the world did Tione mean by all these funny words?

"Bell Cranel!"

The Sword Princess's eyes widened. Were there more people interested in Bell?

Tione smiled when she saw the words start to sink in.

"There are others?"

Tione nodded, "Yes."

"Who?"

Tione started listing people off on her fingers, "His Goddess, the prum girl, the renard, the elf, and hell, this whole thing started because Freya is obsessive and freakish."

Ais's mouth fell open, "That's a lot of people…"

"And those are the ones I've been able to find out about," added Tione.

"So, there could be more?"

Tione nodded, "So, do you know what that means?"

Ais pondered the question. She wracked her new emotions that had started to fill themselves in but came up with nothing. She frowned, "There's nothing I can do. I don't know how to…be like other girls…"

Tione smiled, but it was forlorn, "Neither do I, but that doesn't mean I won't be the Captain's girl one day." The amazon shook her head, and then her smile broadened, "We don't have to be like other girls. The only thing we have to be like is ourselves. If they don't love us for us, then they ain't worth the time!"

Ais didn't look convinced. After all, she was just a weapon…the only thing she was good at was destroying monsters…

Tione sighed, "Well, how about I help you then? I can teach you to be a bit like other girls?"

The lessons were doomed to fail, but Ais needed to see that for herself. Bell Cranel liked Ais Wallenstein, not the other girls. Bell Cranel was in love with the Sword Princess, the woman who would save him from a thousand monsters. The sooner Ais learned that, the better.

***

Ais was jolted from her thoughts by the arrival of the rest of the party. Staring at Bell, she felt her original anger rise. So Ais pouted because even if she wasn't going to give up, she was still angry at Bell. This was the Dungeon, and no one knew it better than her.

Lili walked to the front of the assembled adventurers, "Is everyone prepared? We will now be entering the Great Swamp and will continue to push on until we reach the twenty-ninth floor. If there is anyone who wants to back out, now is the time!"

No one budged.

Lili nodded, expecting that answer, "Then, moving forward, the formation is as follows. Miss Ryuu, Miss Aisha and the Sword Princess will be at the front. Behind them will be Miss Mikoto, Mister Urashima, and Miss Daphne. Next will be Mister Welf and Mister Ouka. Following them will be the supporters and mages. Finally, bringing up the rear will be Master Bell and Miss Otohime. Everyone must take their time," Lili stared at Bell and Otohime, who were already starting to bunch together, "And no one should do anything reckless."

For good measure, Ryuu and Urashima also stared down the rear guard. They both had the decency to look abashed. The party started to take its new formation, but Bell tried to talk to Ais before they left. Ais wasn't having it, though. She simply told him that they would talk later. Then, she turned her back on him. At the front of the party, Ryuu narrowed her eyes.

"If he reached out his hand, you could've taken it," said the elf.

"And I will, but it has to happen later. This is the Dungeon," replied Ais.

The two stared each other down. In the campaign for Bell's heart, they both knew that they were each other's chief rivals.

"That's enough, you two," interrupted Aisha, smacking the two over the head, "We've got bigger issues than your little contest."

The amazon walked off, taking the lead. When the party made their way down the stairs, they came face to face with the Great Swamp. Great large trees rose from the ground, and their roots caused a great mess of tangles. These roots ran over the top of mud and water. Lichen almost covered the entire area top to bottom, not to mention great swathes of vines tangling this way and that.

Aisha made a face, "I always hate coming to this floor, the mud ruins my clothing," the amazon smacked at her neck, "and the bugs are awful."

All around the adventurers' swarms of tiny monsters moved this way and that. Blood-Lets, Darkflies, and more made up for a low buzzing sound heard throughout the floor.

Behind them, Lili brought up the rear, "Which is why Miss Naaza was kind enough to provide us with healing salves and itch cream. Now get moving! The less time spent here, the better."

"Understood," responded Ryuu, who made the first move onto the path of roots.

A long time ago, adventurers whose names were lost to time had charted out a long path along the crisscrossing roots. This functioned as a sort of road through the swamp.

"Hey…ummm… there's no floor boss down here, right?" asked Cassandra.

Lili shook her head, "No, but there are many monsters that come close. Think of them like area bosses, like the Cadmus Dragon."

"What are they?" asked Haruhime, careful to not let any potions fall from her bag.

"The first is known as the Witch-Of-The-Woods," began Lefiya. The elf was looking this way and that. Her upbringing meant that she especially hated this floor and the stench it brought with it. In fact, many elven adventurers were notorious for not going past this floor simply based on its smell and disgusting interior.

"The second is Marsh Warden, a monster made of vines and moss," continued Lefiya. Her foot almost slipped on a wet piece of moss; it was Elwin who caught her. She nodded her thanks before continuing, "and the last one is Great Green Ogre."

"…what are the chances that we run into one?" asked Chigusa. The young girl from the Far East definitely moved with the most confidence among the supporters and mages. In fact, it was the three trained members of Takemikazuchi Familia, who grew up among nature in abject poverty, who moved the best through the swamp. Even the lumbering Ouka seemed more at home and at ease.

"The chances are quite low. That said…" began Lili, "Incoming!"

The Dungeon finally took notice of their presence, and a flock of long-necks descended on them. These birds looked much like Herons, except that their talons were over a foot long, and their beaks were filled with needle teeth. They swooped and bit at the party.

"Firebolt!" called Bell.

Blasts of flame began to shoot off. Bird carcasses started to fall to the ground. Around Bell, the other adventurers began to grab bows from the supporters.

Mikoto took one from Haruhime, their fingers brushing. Mikoto nodded her thanks before she started shooting off arrows. Chigusa, who dropped her pack, echoed her movements. The two were lastly joined by Urashima, who began throwing shuriken with precision. As the birds began to rise up into the higher branches, Ryuu and Aisha jumped after them. By leaping from branch to branch, the two were able to cut down the last monsters.

Otohime let out a breath, "Well, thank goodness…"

"Will-O-Wisps!" called back Ais.

These floating sacs of magical flames descended on the party, which held magic stones inside, were decidedly dangerous. Their strategy involved getting close to an adventurer and then exploding. When they died, gas clouds released, which meant that each fiery explosion was more dangerous than the last.

The party soon discovered this, as Daphne began cutting through sac after sac. The trained adventurer took the lead in cutting a path forward. If one could kill them before they self-exploded, that was best. The only problem was that the gas still made it out. The area now began to fill with a dangerous fog.

"Clear out of the way! Tatsumaki!" cried out Welf. A steady gust of wind began to shift the air.

"Everyone keep moving!" shouted Lili. The first rule of the swamp was to never stand still. Doing that meant risking getting bogged down.

The party took up a brisk jog across the swampy floor. They ran along the great roots, careful to never stop in one place. The only problem was how twisty the branches were. To travel ten feet in a straight line meant going fifty feet around. Thankfully, this is where Aisha came in.

Hippolyta had kept both eyes open, searching for the right marker. Finally, her eyes alighted on a great carpet of moss that seemed to shimmer in the unnatural light of the Dungeon. Her grin was feral as she called for the others. She began leaping great distances, across rocks and over bogs, until she arrived at her destination. She reached down and ripped the moss up, revealing six slender boats. The moss shimmered in her hand and then transformed into a white tarp. With each boat was a long pole to help push them through the water.

Ryuu landed next to her, "One of Andromeda's illusions?"

Aisha nodded, "Specially made magic item," she started grabbing the push poles nearby, "Alright everyone, start getting into boats!"

"Lili wants all the high-level adventurers to spread themselves out!" commanded the prum, "Split up for different boats!"

The supporters went first, each carrying a pack with them. Then went in the level threes and fours. Finally, the strongest among them split up. In total, there were five boats on the water. The first, which just so happened to be the lead boat, was Haruhime, Mikoto, and Aisha. They were relying on the amazon to guide them through the water.

Behind that was a boat with Lili, Welf, and Bell. The three gravitated to each other naturally. Next was Cassandra, Daphne, and Ryuu. The elf maintained a steady watch on the water, standing at the bow of the boat. Daphne pushed them along while Cassandra watched on. The healer would deny it, but she enjoyed admiring her dear friend's taut muscles.

Next to them was Ouka, Chigusa, and Ais Wallenstein. How she had ended up in that boat, she had no idea. She stared longingly at Bell's boat and felt a deep clawing sensation when she saw how close by Ryuu's boat was. Her grip on her sword tightened. The only thing holding her back from jumping over was all the…water…

Lastly, bringing up the rear was the double-date boat. Since there were only four supporters, who took up the space of two people with their large packs, the last boat had room for four people. Inside, Otohime stood at the front, gazing out in childlike wonder. Behind her, as always, was Urashima, who studied the murky waters. Next was Lefiya, who tried to cover her nose with a sleeve. And in the back, Elwin just pushed them along.

They travelled in almost complete silence, with the occasional whispered conversation taking place. Elwin's head turned back and forth, a growing sense of unease forming. He looked to the front and saw how tense Otohime's shoulders were.

Farther ahead, Bell felt his anxiety grow. Something was terribly off. In fact, every member of Hestia Familia felt uneasy. They knew danger. Haruhime's tail twitched, and Mikoto's instincts were screaming at her. Welf's grip on the pole tightened, and Lili's hand rested on her arm bow.

Finally, it was Ryuu who put their thoughts into words, "The buzzing has stopped…"

It was true, after the initial attacks, the monsters had seemed to vanish. They had been left alone, for the most part. As their boats continued along the water, the others began to feel it too. Then, Aisha began to notice the driftwood. They were large pieces of wood that seemed to drift against the current. Their bark was jagged and mishmashed.

Ais narrowed her eyes, "Those aren't logs…"

The water exploded, and great snapping maws almost devoured them. Giant creatures seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Their skin shifted and changed colours. These beasts were known as petsuchos. They were great monsters that could shift their colours and hide their presence. They had massive tails, hides as thick as iron, and jaws that could snap the bone or even a level five adventurer with ease. In the water, they were comparable to anything found in the Deep Floors.

A whole pack of them materialized, some coming out from under the tangles of roots and others throwing away their disguise as Dungeon debris. Each one was at least two meders long and a meder across. Despite that size, though, they had pulled off the perfect ambush.

They were the ultimate hunters of the swamp, with the ability to mask their scent, change their skin colour, and even hide their heat signature. For the most part, they kept to the deeper areas of the swamp, where movement was more manageable. As long as an adventurer did not venture onto the water, they would be fine.

In their boats, the expedition party really were sitting ducks. The boat in the back was the first to be attacked. Thankfully, they had the most paranoid people in it. Princess Otohime Nakamura had been the subject of over one hundred and eighty-three assassination attempts. Urashima Taro had been subject to one hundred and twelve. By this point, not even the stealthiest of individuals could sneak up on them. The two leapt into action, each scooping up one mage.

Holding Elwin bridal style, Urashima leapt to the trees. When they landed in safety, Elwin batted his eyelashes, "My hero!"

Urashima grunted, "Please don't make this weird."

Otohime landed next to him, Lefiya thrown over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The little elf was scrambling, "Put me down, put me down, put me down!"

Urashima looked away, "Princess, please put Lady Lefiya down…we can see up her outfit…"

"I can die a happy man…"

"PUT ME DOWN!!"

In front of them, the boat with the Sword Princess was in a much more dangerous position. Ais's immediate reaction was to get out of the water, but she had also sworn to protect these people. Chigusa still had her supporter's pack to put back on, but the way the petsuchos kept knocking into the boat made it difficult. This also meant that Ais and Ouka were constantly off balance. Neither of them was used fighting on such unstable terrain. They jabbed and slashed when they could, holding off the monsters for now.

"Anyone here know a weakness?" asked Ouka as he tried to cut down at the gator monsters surrounding his boat. Soon, he would be overwhelmed. Flashbacks to an injured Chigusa haunted his memory.

"Well, Little Bit?" asked Welf, who tried shooting flames at the monsters. Unfortunately, they just ducked back underwater.

While everyone looked to the Dauntless, it was actually Bell Cranel who provided the answer.

"Ice! Cold temperatures!" screamed Bell. In his mind, Eina nodded on, gesturing for more information.

"They're cold-blooded monsters! We have to freeze them!"

Lili turned, "Thousand-Elf!"

"I wishe upon the name of Wishe…" began Lefiya, already chanting.

Sensing a magical presence, some of the petsuchos turned towards her. They began making their way towards the four adventurers waiting for them.

"I name thee Aries, the sign of the Ram: Aurata!" finished Elwin. A magical golden barrier sprung up in front of him. Hands thrust out in concentration, he turned to Oto and Ura, "I'll protect the front; you two cover the sides and the back!"

The two nodded, made eye contact, and turned in different directions. Facing left, the Dragon Princess began dancing across the tops of monsters. Using her Bisento as a pole, she vaulted from monster to monster, thrusting downwards as she went. When the creatures thrashed beneath her, she'd leverage her polearm up and out, leaving long gashes. Unfortunately, one petsuchos got smart and wriggled so that her weapon got stuck. The Princess was knocked off balance, and a monster waiting behind her opened its jaws.

Urashima slammed on top of it, metal arms first. Following the incident at the tournament, he had Welf reinforce them with Dir-Adamantine and strips from the Black-Goliath robe. With enough momentum, he could punch through almost any obstacle.

At this moment, he punched through the skull of the monster, right into its brain. As it began to sink, and the Living Weapon began dropping with it, he was pulled off his feet. Moments later, where he had been standing, another petsuchos chomped forward, eating at its monster brethren. The water turned red.

Him and Otohime, who had pulled him, landed on a large boulder. The Dragon Princess had recovered her Bisento, and her eyes were steely. Without acknowledging each other, they leapt back into battle. The two fought like a hive mind, with a sense of cooperation that surpassed even the Gulliver Brothers.

"Blizzard, the three severe winters – my name is Alf!" screamed Lefiya. An explosion of ice followed, shooting out in front of her—jagged spikes formed over the water, freezing the lead half of the monsters.

"Everyone, to the Thousand Elf!" shouted Ryuu. The others were quick to comply and began jumping. Daphne assisted Cassandra, and Ais and Ouka helped Chigusa. Aisha had jumped on ahead but turned back when she heard a familiar yell. The stupid, clumsy little Enchantenko had been knocked off balance by a last-minute tail whip. As she began to fall towards the water, the pack of petsuchos began to gather…

"Haruhime!" shouted Aisha, one foot off the ground.

Then, a shadow streaked by. Without a thought for herself, Yamato Mikoto dived into the water and tackled the nearest monster. She was on its back and wrapped her arms around its giant maw.

"Lady Haruhime! Please, get out of the water!" screamed Mikoto. Then the petsuchos started to flip and roll. Mikoto was holding on for dear life as she began to go in and out of the water. Haruhime was so paralyzed in fear that she didn't notice another monster sneak up on her. That was when Aisha slammed into it, feet first.

"Let's go!" screamed Aisha. She picked up Haruhime and jumped from the water. On dry land, they all gathered to watch Mikoto wrestle with the beast. They did what they could to shoot at and finish off the rest of the pack, but none had been able to find a clear shot on the final giant beast. Any magic would most certainly hit Mikoto as well, and even Chigusa was not good enough to land that arrow in a clean shot. Just as Otohime and Bell were about to jump back into the water, they saw Mikoto stab the beast in the eye.

The petsuchos roared in pain, opening their maw with great force. Mikoto had been careful before to bring her feet into a position on top of its mouth. When it snapped open, she used the momentum to push herself into the air. She did a graceful mid-air flip before landing in a crouch next to her companions. When she stood, she was met by their slack-jawed gaze. She suddenly felt her cheeks start to burn terribly warm. Thankfully, Ryuu took control of the situation.

"Alright! There are most likely more monsters on the way!" screamed the elf, "We need to get moving before we get caught! Let's go! But first," she turned to the last petsuchos, "Someone put the damnable beast down!"

Everyone jumped at her words and resumed their trek. Chigusa threw a spear that went right through the beast's other eye, killing it. As Ryuu passed the young samurai, she patted her apprentice on the shoulder.

"I'm proud of you," said Ryuu before walking off.

As they continued their march, at a much slower pace now, Mikoto felt Haruhime fall in step beside her. The fox princess's tail wrapped around Mikoto's hand.

"Thank you…for saving me…again…" Haruhime was blushing so hard that she couldn't look her friend in the eyes.

Mikoto's eyes widened, and she mumbled, "Always," in response. She studied the ground as she walked.

Behind them, Cassandra watched on, "I can't even imagine being that close…"

Daphne narrowed her eyes, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Cassandra whirled, "Nothing! I mean…"

Daphne shook her head, "If you don't think I wouldn't do the same for you…"

The usually snarky adventurer trailed off. At her side, a hand moved out, palm open. Cassandra stared at it, then looked up to Daphne. Then, she looked back at the open hand. Slowly, afraid as if it would bite her, she took it in her own.

"Stay close to me…got that?"

Cassandra nodded, her heart pounding much too quickly.

The party's earlier formation had been totally knocked off course. Now, everyone just kept walking, wet and bedraggled, looking for a spot to rest. Aisha walked at the front, a scowl on her lips. Behind her, Lili studied a slightly soggy map.

"If we travel just a little further, there should be a large stone clearing we can rest on," called back Lili. The party called out noises of affirmation and trusted in the words of their commander—all except Aisha, who remained silent.

Around them, the insects began buzzing again. There was the occasional attack from a stray long-neck or Gilman, but it seemed that there was a lull in danger...for the moment.

When they arrived at the large boulder that would be their rest stop, they actually found it to be a set of raised rocks. These rocks sat on top of a massive tree stump, covered in vines. The party fell to their butts as they arrived. Aisha volunteered to take guard position, and Lili checked her watch.

"Now is as good as time as any for a lunch break!" she called, "Eat now! Lili does not want to stop later!"

Everyone grunted, and the supporters silently handed out sandwiches they had prepared ahead of time. Everyone was too exhausted to bother with formality, so they all began stuffing their faces. All except one, that is…

"How in the world can you still eat so daintily?" asked Daphne, who stared at Otohime.

Otohime tilted her head, "You believe this is dainty?"

Then the ex-Princess plucked a part of her sandwich and popped it into her mouth. Not a single crumb went anywhere except into her stomach. After swallowing her food, the Princess shook her head, "If I was to eat like this back home, I would get many slaps on the wrist," she smiled, "This is quite a wonderful experience! Never before have I been able to rough it like this!"

Daphne pulled a face, "I hate how optimistic you are…"

Otohime shrugged, "Ura is not injured, and I have not had to use my magic. All is good."

Urashima frowned, "Please include your own wellbeing next time."

Otohime shrugged again, and Urashima's frown deepened.

Meanwhile, Bell was squirming in his seat. He felt Ais stare at him. Her golden gaze bore down on him with an incredible intensity. Close by, Welf rolled his eyes.

"I know you want to say it," began the smith, "So go ahead, you earned it."

"As much as Lili hates to admit, the Sword Princess has earned the right to say it," added the prum.

Ais looked at the two of them, who nodded encouragingly. Then she returned her gaze to Bell, "Bell, look at me."

Slowly, the March Hare raised his head. When his eyes met hers, she opened her mouth.

"I told you so."

The words made Bell flinch.

Ryuu turned towards Aisha, "You were wrong too. Now get over it and come join us for lunch."

The amazon called back in her usual haughty tone, "No thanks, I'm good."

Ryuu sighed and muttered about the stubbornness of Amazons but turned back to the commander, "So, what happens next, Dauntless?"

Lili examined her map, "Now, we go with the Sword Princess's plan. We stay away from the water and continue along the path of roots," the prum frowned, "There is only one problem. With our current trajectory, we will be swinging very close to the territory of the Witch of the Woods."

"Then, we'll just have to be extra careful," countered Ouka, "I'm sure we'd all prefer that than going back near the water."

Everyone gave off various sounds of agreement. Ais was the most vocal in her displeasure. Lili nodded her agreement, "Then it is settled. After a quick rest, the party continues on."

Bell nodded, "But before we keep going, I want everyone to take a mandatory nap. Five minutes rest at least."

Some widened their eyes, but Ryuu and Ais smiled softly. Then they noticed that they were both smiling. This was followed by mirrored frowns. Both assumed that Bell only had nap memories with the other. Ais shuffled closer.

"We should go in rotations then," Ais shifted so that she was on her knees, "Bell, you rest first. You can use me as a pillow…if you want."

Ryuu frowned, "That is quite enough. I'm sure Bell would prefer to nap with someone he is close with. Like a Familia member, correct?"

Ryuu shuffled closer and also presented her thighs. Bell looked between the two, while Lili disparaged. She was cursed with tiny prum legs.

That was when Mikoto raised her voice, even though the words tasted like bile, "Sir Bell! I'm sure that Lady Haruhime's lap would be most comfortable…"

She trailed off when she saw Haruhime shake her head. The renard trembled from nerves as she said, "As the one who saved me today…I would be most pleased to present my lap to you…Lady Mikoto…"

All these different people looked between each other in silence. This silence was, of course, broken by…

"Now lie down and close your eyes!"

"Lady Otohime, I am not tired."

"I said, lie down and close your eyes!"

Otohime was forcibly trying to shove Urashima's head into her lap, face first. Thankfully, Urashima was now at the same level as her and was able to resist. The bodyguard sat back on his feet and blushed.

"I must insist that you rest first, Otohime," he patted his legs for emphasis.

Otohime smiled then and laid back happily. She booped Ura on the nose before she closed her eyes.

Watching the two soulmates was what inspired Lili.

"Master Bell," began the prum, "Lili would like to rest. Would your lap be available?"

Bell saw his chance and took it. He went back on his legs and allowed Lili to lie down. The little prum flashed a triumphant smirk at the two Top Tier Adventurers. They both glared at Bell, who gave them an uneasy smile as he shrugged. Nothing to do now, right?

Lefiya watched on, "What a womanizing delinquent."

The elf's eyes were narrowed, and she glared at the boy. Any menace she had, though, was reduced by the nature of her current position.

"You know, you sure got comfortable quick," commented Elwin from above. Lefiya turned to look up from her position. Her head rested on his thighs, and her hands were folded neatly over her stomach. Looking down, Elwin became acutely aware of her curves.

"Is there a problem with this position?" asked Lefiya, eyebrow raised, "I can rest somewhere else if you like…"

"No! It's umm…that is… it's good…really good…" stammered Elwin, "I just thought you weren't the affectionate type."

Lefiya yawned, "Let's just say I'm too exhausted to care," then she narrowed her eyes and pointed a finger, "But no funny business!"

Elwin rolled his eyes, "Oh come on…what could-OW OW OW! Let go of my ear!"

"No funny business!"

"Ok! I got the message!"

Satisfied, Lefiya let go and turned to the side. Soon, her breathing deepened.

"She's going to kill me one day…"

Lili rested on Bell, Oto on Ura, Daphne layover Cassandra, and Mikoto napped on Haruhime. Ouka had offered himself to Chigusa, but she had politely refused. Instead, Welf took up the offer and settled himself onto the big man's lap. Everyone else stood by on guard.

With that, it was time for the adventurers to take a break.

Chapter Text

In her dreams, Haruhime remembered the day things began to change. They had made clear from Orario and were now leaving the Dragon Valley. Their time there had been fruitful, but now they had to go. At Haruhime's request, they were heading back to her homeland to wrap up unfinished business. Unfortunately, Welf, Ryuu, and Lili had their own plans. They would be travelling to Carien and Altena to train their individual skills. Thankfully, Haruhime would still be travelling with Hestia, Bell, and Mikoto. The thought made her smile, returning to her childhood home with her childhood friend. They would have a wonderful time reliving their old memories.

They were staying at a small inn just outside Valhal, the city of the Dragon Valley. They had three rooms, one for the boys, one for Hestia and Lili, and then one for the rest. Mikoto was getting her status updated, and Haruhime was waiting for her. The renard was feeling nostalgic and wanted to retell stories of their youth. When the young Far Eastern woman came inside, though, she was anxious. Mikoto had started to grow her hair out more and had been beginning to weave it for comfort. She was now braiding and unbraiding it. Haruhime had recognized that as a nervous habit.

"What is wrong, Lady Mikoto?"

Mikoto sat on the bed opposite her, looking at the floor. When she didn't speak, Haruhime opened her mouth, "Lady Mikoto, are you not excited to return home? We can visit the shrine and say hello to Lady Tsukuyomi!"

Mikoto flinched from Haruhime's words, and the renard tilted her head, "Is there something wrong?"

The young samurai looked up, "I will not be going home with you, Lady Haruhime."

The renard's ears twitched, "What do you mean?"

"I am joining Lady Lili in her journey to Altena. I will be fighting in the Arena of Nike," explained Mikoto.

A slight frown settled on Haruhime's face, "Why?"

"To get stronger…."

"I see…."

"So…you will not be journeying with me?" asked Haruhime.

Mikoto shook her head. The young samurai tried to smile, "On the bright side, you will have much more time with Sir Bell. It will just be the two of you and Lady Hestia."

Haruhime shook her head. At that moment, she didn't want to spend time with Bell. She wanted to adventure with her dearest friend. Something strange started to grow in her heart. Those next six months, where she journeyed with Goddess Hestia and Bell, should have been the best of her life. She was spending time with her hero, but her heart kept screaming for her to find someone else.

As she journeyed with Bell, Haruhime began to realize she loved the IDEA of Bell. She loved him as a hero who saved lives. She loved him as someone who always stood up for what was good and right. As a person who chased their dreams and ideals, Haruhime loved him. But she realized she didn't actually have anything she loved about Bell Cranel, the person. She didn't hate him; in fact, there was much that they agreed upon. They loved the stories of heroes, and they both enjoyed some of the simpler things in life. The problem was, she didn't feel… that spark. They spent time together and talked together, but Haruhime quickly realized that she could only love Bell as a friend and family member. The initial feelings that had resonated within her began to fade. They travelled farther and farther from the time of her rescue, and her emotions began to solidify. A year and one thousand miles later, Haruhime came to a startling revelation, she did not love the person known as Bell Cranel.

Which was probably for the best, since Haruhime was sure that Bell Cranel did not love her. Even if his skill was not working, Haruhime was sure that Bell would love the Sword Princess again. His feelings were strong, and he was still a forgiving person deep down. Not to mention, she had seen how the others acted. Bell and Ryuu had a bond tighter than she could understand. Hestia had always been the most important person in his life. Haruhime was important to him, but she wouldn't be his number one or two.

Instead, Haruhime felt her thoughts and feelings turning elsewhere. She went home and thought of the little girl that promised to protect her. For as long as Haruhime could remember, Mikoto had stood by and protected her. After she met again with her father, Haruhime found that she only had one dream. To be strong enough to repay the favour. She wanted to find a way to stand side by side with the woman who always stepped in front of her.

From that desire came something new. Every mention and reminder of Mikoto set Haruhime's heart fluttering. Her ebony hair began to invade her thoughts, and she began to miss the young samurai's smile. She had no idea where to put these thoughts, but it was Goddess Hestia who had helped her.

"Listen…I can't tell you much about what happens next," began Hestia one night. The young Goddess had sent Bell away for some trivial task, "but if you want, we can start heading to Altena. It might just be time to pick up our friends."

So, after formally inducting Otohime and Urashima, the five members of Hestia Familia left to go find the others. All along their journey, Haruhime nurtured her thoughts of Mikoto. She thought about why she was feeling this way.

One night, while she tried to understand what was going on, she came across her first love. Bell was standing on a balcony, looking up at the moon. At the sound of footsteps, he turned and smiled.

Haruhime returned it, "Master Bell, what are you doing up so late?"

Bell flushed from embarrassment, "Well…that is…I was looking at the moon and wondering if Ais was doing the same."

Haruhime asked the question, "Master Bell, why do you love the Sword Princess?"

Bell seemed taken aback by the question, "Well…you see…she sav-"

"That’s not what I meant," interrupted the renard, "What about Ais Wallenstein specifically did you love?"

Bell blinked in surprise. He was quiet for a minute and then for several more. After gathering his thoughts, he opened his mouth, "Ais doesn't feel and process emotions like you and me. She has a hard time understanding those things…but even if she doesn't understand those thoughts, Ais will do everything she can to save people."

Bell smiled, "Honestly, she's an airhead. But that has never once stopped her from saving as many people as possible," Bell frowned, "Most people think that she has no emotions, or that she only wants to kill monsters. That's not the Ais I know…."

Supposedly, his skill wasn't working. However, Haruhime thought differently. The renard believed that the skill would reactivate, and when it did, it would be something new. It would be something based on a genuine belief and a love founded on two people becoming equals. Right now, Haruhime believed Liaris Freese was changing and evolving. Right now, it was in its cocoon.

"Then, who is the Ais you know?"

Bell's face turned soft, "She doesn't know how to talk to people, but she's always trying to figure it out. She's absolutely obsessed with potato puffs and hates to be wrong," the boy chuckled, "The first time I trained with her, she didn't know how to train with me. She said she had been up all night thinking about it but wasn't able to come up with a way to train me."

Bell told all the stories he knew then. Every story of his time with Ais. Listening to him, Haruhime thought of her own stories.

***

The nap had only been five minutes, but a year of memories had washed through Haruhime. When she opened her eyes, she found the object of her affection look straight-ahead, pointedly so in fact. Mikoto's eyes would drift down every once in a while, but then they would snap back up.

Haruhime allowed her eyes to blink open and slowly sat up. As she moved, she realized that her robes had slipped loose. The renard scrambled to fix her garments. Her face began to heat up, and her tail wagged back and forth with vigour. She was excited to have been seen.

"Ah! Lady Haruhime…" stuttered Mikoto, "I am glad to see that you are awake! Now then…did you sleep well? Do you require anything?"

Mikoto busied herself, trying to get ready. Haruhime pulled on her sleeve, "No, I'm ok. Are we leaving soon?"

Mikoto nodded, "We are waiting on Lady Cassandra…."

As if summoned, Cassandra sat up. She blinked a couple times before looking to study her compatriots. She spent only a minute studying her surroundings. Then, she was up and at 'em with the rest of the group. Her movements were jerky, and she almost dropped the supplies she packed. When everyone else narrowed their eyes, Daphne waved them off. She would have her own discussion with her strange partner.

"Let's go, everyone! The sleeping beauties are awake!" commanded Aisha, "We have an expedition to continue!"

"That is Lili's call!" called the prum. She rolled her eyes, "That said, it is time to get sorted. Everyone, gather your weapons and supplies!"

The party got their gear together and began to march into their formation. The supporters and mages bunched together while Ais and Ryuu took up their vanguard positions. Behind them were Ouka and Welf. Lili turned to the rest.

"Now then, Miss Aisha, join the others at the front," began Lili. The amazon shook her head.

"No way. I think I'll move to the rearguard this time," declared Aisha.

Ryuu rolled her eyes. Obviously, Aisha was still feeling guilty about earlier. The elf sighed. If the amazon wanted to blame herself, then so be it. She had more pressing matters to attend to.

"Alright then…Master Bell, please move to the vanguard," directed Lili.

This command was met with a loud eep. Bell looked between the Sword Princess and the Faerie Princess. Meanwhile, both women let their gazes dig into him. Then they turned to look at each other. Even though they were in a humid, boggy swamp, the temperature dropped to freezing.

Welf smirked, "Take it easy, you three. What about the rest of us, Lil Bit?"

Lili nodded, "Behind Mister Ouka and Mister Welf will be Miss Daphne and Miss Mikoto. Mister Urashima will help guard the supporters."

"Actually, Lady Lili!" interrupted Mikoto, "I would like to volunteer to protect the supporters."

Lili raised her eyebrow but nodded. Mikoto smiled, and then she turned to smile at Haruhime. When they made eye contact, Haruhime returned the grin. After realizing that everyone was staring at them, they blushed and looked to the floor.

What was Mikoto doing? Lady Haruhime was in love with Sir Bell! And Mikoto loved Lord Takemikazuchi! At least…she thought she did…what was going on with her? Why was everything going so wrong in her head?

Lili finished handing out orders, "Miss Aisha and Lady Otohime will then take up positions in the rearguard."

Everyone left for their assigned positions. Bell, Ais, and Ryuu all stood around at the party's front, glancing between each other. This was most certainly not going to be an awkward expedition, not in the slightest. Everything was going to be perfectly normal.

The three led the way along the path of roots, swatting away the occasional long neck or gilman. There was a pack of Will-o-wisps at one point, but Ryuu used her wind sword to get rid of them.

"That's a powerful sword," commented Ais.

"It was a gift from Welf for officially joining Hestia Familia," replied Ryuu.

Bell looked between the two women. While it sounded like they were exchanging pleasantries, their faces and tone of voice were stiff. Usually, that would be normal for these two particular adventurers. However, this was more subdued than usual. They were especially quiet and cold. Every time Bell tried to break the ice and talk to one, the other would immediately get offended. He had tried to walk that tightrope but soon gave up. Now, there was an awkward silence.

That silence was what saved the party's life.

The cackling started at a high pitch. It bounced off the trees, echoing around them. They had entered on a dip in the road, where water washed over the path, and the mud was of a more solid nature.

"Everyone, group together, now!" called Ryuu.

The party complied, with the supporters moving to the middle. At each cardinal direction, a level five or greater member took up a defensive position. The rest of them filled in the gaps. It was hard to pinpoint the sound of that awful noise, as it seemed to keep moving around them in circles. Then came the stumbling.

From behind sheets of vines, humanoid monsters began to shuffle out. Their pallor was grey, and their skin was rotting. Their nails were long and jagged, and most were missing teeth, hair, or even bits of skin. These creatures were known as revenants. Zombie-like in nature, they were not dangerous on their own. However, these monsters almost always travelled in hordes.

"Oh great…" began Aisha, who pointed her padao at the closest revenants.

"Alright, Lil Bit," cried Welf, "What do we do?"

Lili ground her teeth together and almost cursed her luck. Then she remembered the teachings of the Braver, and the Dauntless took a deep breath. She took stock of the environment, and then the prum made a split-second decision.

"We stay here for now," began Lili, "We must hold off the horde as best we can until we know where the Witch of the Woods is."

As Lili surveyed the party, she made particular eye contact with Otohime. The level four blinked, a frown on her face. Lili shook her head and held up a fist. What happened next was a sigh of relief and a smile.

Lili watched more and more revenants shuffle in. They had long fangs, rotting skin, and long claw-like nails. They moved slowly but had high endurance and strength.

"You sure you don't want to try and skedaddle?" asked Daphne, "We've got the mobility."

Lili shook her head, "We'll be stuck on the narrow path. For now, we fight in the open space for a full range of movement. Until we know where the witch is, we stay here!" the monsters were almost upon them, "Thousand Elf! We're counting on you!"

Standing in the middle of the circle, Lefiya planted her feet and began to chant. As she focused, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. She looked over to find Elwin smiling at her. The half-elf gave her a nod, which she gladly returned. Then, Lefiya took a deep breath.

"Don't let them bite you!" called Ryuu, "They leave an infectious rotting disease!"

The only cure was immediate elixir application, or risk losing the infected body part. These were the last words most people heard, though, and then the horde was upon them. For what seemed like an hour, the only sounds were the mad cackling of the Witch, inhuman grunts, and the sound of metal biting into flesh.

Ouka split one revenant in two with his great axe, but then two more jumped up to fill the gap. Chigusa fired arrows into them, but they kept on shuffling forward. One managed to slip past the defences, its jaws unhinging, aiming for Otohime. Urashima caught it with his metal arms, stopping the bite. Otohime finished it off with a swipe from her bisento. There was no time to talk though, more were on their way. One loomed over Mikoto, about to bite into the back of her neck. Then, a gust of wind passed by, and it exploded.

Ais Wallenstein stood in its place, wreathed in the wind. Ariel provided a type of shield to the Sword Princess, giving her an extra second before a revenant could slip through. The second she appeared in front of Mikoto, though, she disappeared.

The water began to kick up into a circle as Ais moved around the party. Her sword sang as it cut through the relentless horde of monsters.

'Faster,' thought Ais, 'I have to go even faster.'

For the Princess who had forgiven her, for the smith who had comforted her, and for the renard she spoke with. The Sword Princess was going to protect these people with her dying breath. Ais Wallenstein summoned as much wind as she could, and she kept moving. Her speed got faster and faster, but it also meant that she had to keep careful not to slip on the wet floor. Bell watched on, guilty with his inability to do anything. The gasses of the swamp hung in the air, meaning that a stray firebolt could cause more harm than good.

"We need to clear the air," shouted Elwin right before his fist sent a revenant head flying. Boosted with Datauri and his mind load skill, the half-elf was a true front-line fighter now.

"We also need to get ourselves a boost!" responded Aisha.

"Miss Ryuu, Lady Haruhime!" shouted Lili.

"In the sky of a now distant forest. Infinite stars scattered in the endless night sky," began Ryuu, dashing between monsters. She did not have the speed of the Sword Princess, but she was not going to be outdone today. She proved that she was the best concurrent chanter in Orario, her perfect pace of combat not slowing down in the slightest.

"Kokonoe. Beloved snow. Beloved crimson."

Haruhime added her voice to Ryuu's. The two's magic duet fought back against the crushing horde. A green glow formed around Ryuu, and beads of light flocked to Haruhime. This did much to attract the monsters, though. Ryuu was perfectly capable of defending herself, Haruhime on the other hand…

Did not falter because she had faith in her guardian. Mikoto stood by. Her katana was dancing in her hands. Revenant limbs went flying around the swamp as she fought to buy her precious friend more time. With masterful sword strokes, she severed heads and bisected bodies. She wore a mask of perfect calm, but inside she raged. No one threatened Haruhime.

"Grow. That power and that vessel," continued Haruhime. Now a level two, the number of tails she could potentially produce had doubled. However, she was still learning, so her maximum number was nine…for now. Her tails danced behind, a dazzling display of golden, shimmering splendour. In this way, she indeed looked like Enchantenko. It took all of Mikoto's willpower not to stop and stare.

"Imbue the light of stardust and destroy the enemy," finished Ryuu, "Luminous Wind!"

Churning out from the Faerie Princess, great blades of wind shook the trees. Branches came tumbling down when they were cut, squishing revenants beneath them. The wind continued to rage at the elf's beckoning. The leaves of the Dungeon sang in response. The noxious gas cleared, if only for a moment, and the beasts had been pushed back.

Lili grinned, like a predator, "Master Bell, Mister Welf, feel free to cut loose!" She turned back to Lefiya, "Miss Thousand Elf! Let em have it!"

"Firebolt!"

"Hii!"

Welf's flames exploded into the horde of beasts. Each revenant caught in their attack cried out in pain, frozen in its onslaught. In their hesitation, Ais Wallenstein cut them down like blades of grass.

Meanwhile, Lefiya Viridis had her own plan in mind. She had used her elf ring to save one spell, waiting for the time when fire magic would be usable. Now that she had gotten the all-clear…

Magic circles popped up all over the clearing. The largest was underneath Lefiya herself, but countless others formed. Each one acted like a target for what came next.

"Fusillade Fallarica!"

A magical bombardment of fire came next. Countless revenants exploded into dust. The flames were so intense that the trees began to catch fire as well. Lefiya continued her bombardment, her spell obliterating everything around her. In her mind, she saw Filvis. Lefiya believed, no…she knew that if she had been stronger, her dearest friend would still be alive. Lefiya was not holding back anymore. When the attack finished, the clearing had grown much broader. Countless trees still burned, but there were almost no more revenants. Some were still hidden in the trees, but they were scattered now.

In the heat of battle, though, the group of adventurers had forgotten about the even greater enemy. The Witch of the Woods dropped down in front of them and started lobbing fireballs. The monster had a long-necked and a pinched face. What passed for hair on its body was a clump of wispy stringy threads. Its skin appeared to be rotting, and its fingers were long and grey. It was one of those rare monsters that could use magic, able to lob fireballs with one hand and fling spikes of ice with the other. Its mad laughter worked to send nearby monsters into a frenzy. Those monsters could then fight harder and faster while helping to gather them into one area. That was what attracted the horde of revenants.

Despite its name, though, the Witch moved with extreme speed and agility. It hopped from tree to tree, swinging around the party. Its magical attacks exploded into the crowd, burning the members too slow to get out of the way.

As Lili tried to evade the attacks, she called out, "Use the spell, Lady Haruhime!"

"DANCE!"

The golden tails of Enchantenko shot out, blasting themselves to everyone who wasn't a level five. The golden glow raised the level of everyone in the area except Haruhime herself. This helped alleviate some of the fatigue they were feeling after taking down the horde of revenants. With renewed vigour, they began to try and nail down the Witch.

As the cackling continued, though, more revenants, gilman, and long necks joined the fight. The worst, though, were the flies. Now gathering in significant, dangerous swarms, they milled about the adventurers and began to bite and sting. When the adventurers got distracted by the bugs, fireballs and ice spikes slammed into them. The level boost helped almost everyone, though. Now, everyone in the party was either level four or five, meaning that they had the endurance and agility to withstand their attackers—everyone but the one who had cast the spell. The poor little renard tried to dodge out of the way, holding her goliath cloak close, but still took a spike to the back.

The blow sent her face-first into a tree, where she crumpled to the ground. She had slammed so hard that her nose had been broken. Blood began to run down her beautiful face. What happened next was a frightening loss of control. Seeing Haruhime unconscious triggered some kind of berserker rage in Mikoto. She saw the attack occur in slow motion, saw Haruhime fall to the ground, and saw the blood and mud begin to flow. For lack of a better term, something in her snapped. Her vision tunnelled onto the Witch cackling above her. Some sort of guttural cry ripped itself from her throat. Mikoto launched herself at the Witch of the Woods, following her into the treetops.

"Black Crow!" shouted Aisha.

"Get back into position Miss Mikoto!"

The Black Crow heard none of that, though. She was on the hunt. Unfortunately, the Witch was cunning and led the boosted level four away from her party. The feral ex-gladiator followed, all reason out the window. Her primal instincts had kicked in, months of life-or-death fights driving her away from her friends.

She screamed, "I'll kill you!" as she moved. Her only response was the mad cackling of the Witch.

Eventually, once she had been taken far enough away, the Witch turned to launch its counterattack. It slammed into the Black Crow, dragging the two of them down to the roots of the great trees they walked upon.

They wrestled in ankle-deep water. Mikoto felt claws dig into her skin but took satisfaction because the Witch was losing limbs. The Witch had speed and magic, but not strength. Its appendages were easily severed, and the monster was quickly contained. Eventually, Mikoto was able to wrap her hands around the monster's throat, wanting to inflict pain on her enemy. Horus screamed his encouragement in her head, telling her to give in to the rage. However, even though the Black Crow crushed and squeezed, the Witch's laughter continued and then came the hemahs. Giant hippo-like beasts with pale skin came marching through. They knocked over all the debris in their way.

The beasts just about stampeded over the adventurer, but she was able to roll out of the way just in time. Her survival instincts kicked into overdrive, and she spent a second battling away her bloodlust. That was when a hemah knocked into her with its large head. Mikoto got launched off her feet and into a boulder.

She screamed out in pain and only had a moment to focus before another beast charged her down. The cackling made the otherwise slow beasts incredibly fast. They came barrelling down at Mikoto, and she thought she was gonna die.

"Firebolt!"

A tremendous white blast of flames lit up the swamp then, and hemahs were sent in every direction. Bell Cranel and Ais Wallenstein landed right afterwards and began their battle. Mikoto tried to stand up and join them, but the shock had left her legs like jelly. Thankfully, her mentor swooped down to pick her up. Ryuu carried Mikoto back up to the branches; the elf's face was stony and distant.

"Ryuu…" began Mikoto.

"Don't talk," responded her vice-captain.

Ryuu deposited her a bit farther away with the other supporters, then the elf turned around and returned to the fray. Haruhime crouched down to help Mikoto; the renard's usually gentle face was stern and severe.

"Are you ok, Lady Haruhime?" asked Mikoto.

"I'm fine," was Haruhime's curt reply.

Sufficiently cowed by the renard's tone, Mikoto took the healing in silence. She didn't see it happen, but her friends defeated the hemah's and cut down the Witch of the Woods. When that finished, they gathered around the Black Crow. Mikoto winced when she saw how injured everyone was. Even Otohime was scowling since Urashima had taken some long claw marks to his torso. Thankfully, no one was grievously injured or bore bite marks. Ura had been the worst of it. However, all these injuries happened after she had left to chase the Witch. Thankfully, they were already starting to heal; even Haruhime had mostly recovered from the ice spike to the back. Lili opened her mouth, ready to reprimand, but Haruhime beat her to it.

"How could you do something so foolish?" asked Haruhime, voice much louder than usual. Her tail was erratic behind her.

"Well, it hurt you," replied Mikoto, uncertain.

Haruhime's body shook from anger, "So, you go ahead and almost die? What if we hadn't been able to catch up?"

Mikoto looked away, "I hadn't thought that far."

"I most certainly think not!"

Haruhime did not shout. She was not an angry person. That changed that day in the Dungeon.

"Why in the world would you just lose it like that?" asked Haruhime.

Now Mikoto was getting annoyed. The young warrior stood, "Because that monster hurt you! I wasn't going to just let it hurt you!"

"Why in the world would you risk your life over someone like me?" Haruhime stepped forward. Everyone else stepped back. Her face was red as she leaned in towards the most important person in her life.

"Because you obviously don't seem to care," responded Mikoto.

Formality be damned, she was tired and injured. She hadn't meant to take off, but her animal instincts had taken over. She was sorry, but she also knew that other people in this party would have done the same—especially Haruhime's precious Bell Cranel. Jealousy took root then.

"Then why chase the monster?" retorted Haruhime. That moment had been so unlike Mikoto. Why would she get so angry over Haruhime getting hurt? That didn't make sense. After all, she was still just a useless little supporter. Besides, if Mikoto was really angry…

"Why didn't you come to check on me and protect me?" asked Haruhime.

At that, Mikoto's anger deflated. She seemed to whisper something. Before she could repeat what she had said, though, Welf coughed into his fist.

"Hey Lil Bit, why don't we finish collecting magic stones?" asked the smith.

Lili tore her eyes away from the spectacle in front of her and nodded. She gave the command, and everyone else happily went away for a moment. Even the ordinarily dense Ais picked up on the tense situation. She dragged Bell away, who was still busy staring.

"Miss Mikoto, why didn't you come to try and help me?" asked Haruhime. Her voice was low and quiet.

Mikoto frowned, "Because I would have been useless."

She was not a healer, and she doubted she could've done much to defend her. In fact, she hadn't been the one to save Haruhime, not truly. It was Bell that had done that.

"And you'd be more useful dead?"

"No…but at least I could do something…."

At the sight of Mikoto's despondence, Haruhime's face softened, and her tail began to stroke her dearest. She did not truly understand what had happened, but there was a chance to help someone important to her, "Mikoto, you are one of the strongest adventurers in this party. You are a vital member of this Familia."

Mikoto frowned, "I'm not, though. I have nothing that makes me special. Besides, I'm still not strong enough…."

Haruhime's head tilted, "Strong enough?"

Mikoto nodded, "I have to be stronger," Mikoto took a deep breath. When she met Haruhime's eyes, the renard shivered from their intensity, "I have to be as strong as Sir Bell."

Now Haruhime was more confused. Why was she competing with Bell?

"Why Sir Bell?"

'Because he has you,' thought Mikoto. Then she shook her head, looking to dispel those false, jealous thoughts.

Looking to calm Mikoto down, Haruhime took her hands, "I think you are incredibly strong. In fact, you might be the strongest woman I know."

Mikoto returned the gesture and squeezed tightly. This conversation was not finished, but she was tired and happy to have Haruhime's attention. Even if she didn't understand why.

With a slight smile, she said, "I believe that I could say the same to you."

Haruhime brought their foreheads together. They were close enough to touch, "Please, do not risk your life over one such as I."

Mikoto shook her head, "I cannot make that promise, but I will try."

After a moment of comfort, the two returned to the party, holding hands. When she saw the rest of her friends, Mikoto assumed the dogeza position and begged forgiveness. Haruhime giggled off to the side.

Ryuu sighed, admonished her, and then set her to work. Welf and Lili rolled their eyes but let it go. Ais watched on as Mikoto and Haruhime seemed to continue working together.  She pouted as jealousy overtook her.

"Why is it so easy for them…" asked the Sword Princess.

"Ummmm…Ais, are you ok?"

Ais turned to find Bell waiting for her. Then, she remembered she was angry, but she needed someone to answer her questions.

"Bell, how were they able to forgive each other so easily?" asked Ais.

Bell seemed surprised, "Oh, well, it seems like they took the time to talk. When two people care about each other like that…they usually find a way…."

There was a moment of silence. Then Ais asked the vital question.

"Will we?"

"Will we what?"

"…find a way?"

Bell's eyes popped open. Certainly, she was just mistaken again. Not considering the social context.

"Bell, I care about you. I think you still care about me. Will we find a way?"

No, Ais did understand what she was asking. And she asked anyway. Ais was as exposed as she had ever been, but she met Bell's stare with her own.

"We might…" answered Bell.

"If you really want to try, then you have to trust me, Bell," continued Ais, "At least in the Dungeon," she tilted her head, "Do you think that's possible?"

Bell nodded, "It is. I'm sorry, Ais."

Ais smiled, "Then, do you want to go kill monsters with me?"

Bell returned the smile when he nodded. Ryuu and Aisha watched on. When she saw the elf's frown, Aisha nudged her, "Are you ok with this? You could probably stop it if you wanted to."

Ryuu frowned at the amazon, "If I want to stop it?" Ryuu shook her head, "Look at him; he's happy," the elf sighed, "Besides, things have grown complicated…."

She didn't say anything else and instead began to supervise. When that was done, the party resumed its march through the Dungeon. Ryuu, Ais, and Bell took up their position at the front. Bell happily conversed with Ais as they cut down monsters while Ryuu glowered from behind. Just because he was happy didn't mean she had to be too. Eventually, Bell noticed his elvish companion.

"Ryuu, is something wrong?"

"You are much too trusting, Mister Cranel," responded the Gale Wind.

Bell's face dropped like he had been slapped, "Ryuu, did I do something wrong?"

"No, it's fine," responded Ryuu, "Shall we continue?"

They walked for all of five steps before the conversation continued.

"That was rude," said Ais.

Without looking at her, Ryuu said, "Weren't you the one refusing to talk to Bell earlier? Acting like a child?"

Ais frowned, "Well, that was because…."

"Because you wanted to be immature," responded Ryuu.

"Ryuu…is something wrong?" asked Bell.

Ryuu started to grind her teeth together, "It's fine, Bell."

"Are you mad because Bell is talking to me?" asked Ais.

Ryuu did not respond.

"Ryuu, you're mad because I'm talking to Ais? You said I should try to apologize…."

Ryuu grimaced, caught by her own logic, "Yes, well…you seemed to change your mind very quickly," her jealousy built higher and higher, "Honestly, sometimes I wonder if I even know you anymore."

The words had been spat out, but Ryuu knew she didn't actually mean them. She was just jealous and alone. She had lost her original Familia, Syr, and now even Bell was starting to drift away. Now that he was getting along with the Sword Princess, how long before he forgot her? Ryuu wanted to keep his attention, even if only for a second longer. She didn't want to be alone anymore.

"Of course, you know me, Ryuu!" responded Bell.

"Oh? Well, recent knowledge about your family says otherwise."

The words were out before she could think of them. Thankfully, only Ais and Bell heard, but it was still enough. The boy stopped in his tracks, his heart in his throat.

"Ryuu…" whispered Bell.

The elf flinched.

"Bell's family…?" asked Ais.

Bell flinched. He started walking forward.

"It's nothing, Ais."

His voice was quiet and laced with disappointment.

The rest of the trip was awkwardly quiet. Ais looked between Bell and Ryuu, worried that she had done something wrong.  She knew better than to try to start a conversation but was hoping that someone would interrupt their journey. Unfortunately, no one did. They made their way through the rest of the Great Swamp. The water started to get shallower and began to collect into a river. Things began to get clearer and cleaner. Finally, they came to the next path down. The river flowed next to it, carrying downwards.

The group gathered, unaware of the tension between two of their leaders. Bell was quiet and contemplative; meanwhile, Ryuu was shifty and looking back and forth. Everyone was quick to pick up on what was not being said. Lili frowned but didn't say anything. Without knowing what happened, she didn't know if she had the right. Instead, she looked to Welf and Otohime. The two more emotionally mature adventurers nodded. They would speak to the two of them later.

The group walked down, and immediately the temperature rose. The humid atmosphere was replaced with a dry, biting heat. People began to sweat as they walked. They entered the next floor down and were met with rolling dunes. There were outcrops and layers of rock scattered along the surface, but they were few and far between. The predominant feature was the sand and the river that cut through it. Growing alongside the water were flowers, grass, and bullrushes. Lili gave the expedition party a minute to take it in, but then she ordered the march to continue.

They had trouble adjusting on the sand, tripping and shifting as they moved. They slowly began to walk and shuffle over to one of the more extensive outcrops. When they got there, they found that there were signs of burn marks and a stone circle. There were also clearly designated spots for tents and supplies. These areas were often used by the same groups of adventurers and had become the de facto locations for expeditions. This also meant that there were caches that clever adventurers could access. Aisha dug her hand into a large crack and began pulling out batches of food, water, and firewood.

Ais frowned when she saw that. The fact that they had firewood meant she had nothing to do. She looked around at everyone diligently working away, but then she saw Bell standing on guard duty. Ryuu was at the other side and studying a map with Lili and Daphne. Ais walked over to stand next to him.

"I don't want to talk, Ais," began Bell.

Ais nodded, "Can I stand here with you?"

Bell nodded.

They stood like that for half an hour before the boy opened his mouth again.

"You don't want to know?" asked Bell.

Ais tilted her head, "I do, but I think that I shouldn't be the one to ask. I have my own secrets, after all."

Bell smiled, "So, you understand?"

Ais nodded, "Family is important. If you don't want to talk about it, I understand," Ais paused, "But, you should talk to Ryuu."

Bell looked down, "I should?"

Ais nodded again, "You two need to be friends. You care about her?"

Bell nodded.

With that, they returned to their friends.

Chapter Text

Chapter 21:

Spending the night in the Great Desert of the Dungeon was different from the Great Swamp. Night in the Dungeon was already different, but in the desert, all temperatures were extreme. The nights were freezing, filled with a chill. Everyone had to bundle up in their coats and place their cots right next to each other. Bell had been sandwiched between Welf and Ouka. There was a cocoon of muscley warmth that surrounded him.

Unfortunately, despite the warmth and comfort, he hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep. Understanding that there was nothing to be done in the tent, he decided to walk outside and maybe clear his head in the Dungeon. The only problem was, the moment he stepped out, his eyes found the guard. Sitting in the middle of the camp, trying to survey the entire landscape, was Ryuu Leon. The elf turned at the sound of him, a giant mass in her bundle of clothes. Bell knew, though, it was all for show. The second an attack happened, she would pounce. Her senses were always on to make sure that she protected everyone around her. It was one of the things he admired about her.

"How can I help you, Bell?"

Bell reached up to scratch the back of his head, "I couldn't sleep…so I thought I'd come and try to clear my head. I can head back in my tent if you'd prefer."

Ryuu shook her head, her hair swishing underneath the thick hood. Seeing all her clothing reminded Bell that he hadn't brought enough of his own. He was starting to feel the chill of the night. A shiver went up his spine, and his teeth began to chatter. Ryuu saw him shaking and sighed. She opened up the blanket she was holding.

"Come on, Bell. We can share it for now," replied the elf. In her hand was a corner of the thick wool blanket. Bell hesitated at first, but he then decided it was better to be embarrassed than to freeze.

The two of them sat next to each other in silence. Unfortunately, it was not a pleasant silence. They still had not taken the time to discuss Ryuu's little slip-up from earlier. Bell had not mustered up the courage to do so, and Ryuu was not in the mood to bring up her own mistakes.

Finally, Bell sat straight and decided to get on with it. He was the Captain of this Familia, which meant that he had a job to do.

"Ryuu, what happened yesterday?"

The elf didn't answer him at first. She looked at the ground, collected her thoughts….and then still kept quiet. How was she going to broach this topic? Jealousy wasn't pleasant, and she hated that she, of all people, felt it. Also, how was she supposed to talk about Alfia, something that traumatic and buried in her past?

"…Bell…I am…that is…." Ryuu felt her cheeks heat up. Was she really going to do this in the Dungeon of all places? Then she looked at Bell's face, curious and desperate in the Dungeon light. She realized at that moment, none of the other stuff mattered. She deserved to be honest. For better or worse, she needed to be honest and tell him the truth. Her heart fluttered, and her mouth moved beyond her will.

"Bell…I love you," said Ryuu.

What the elf expected was for the boy to go red in the face. She expected him to break down into a mess. She thought he would scream. This was Bell Cranel, after all. However, he did no such thing. Instead, Bell looked to the ground in silence. As Ryuu looked at him, though, she felt her lips burn. Her head tilted, and her sky-blue eyes focused on Bell's mouth. Suddenly, like a slap in the face, memories began to return, two separate nights, one after their reunion in Carien and one after their mini-expedition. She remembered how she had gone to sleep ecstatic, dreaming happy thoughts. Drunk Ryuu was bold indeed. She also started to get incredibly embarrassed. But then she realized something vital. The pieces began to click together.

"You knew this whole time…" began Ryuu.

"Knew what?" responded Bell. He sounded anxious and unsure.

"That I loved you," said Ryuu. She shook her head, "No, you didn't know that. But at the very least, you knew that I was interested in you. But you never said anything…you just…let me sit there. You acted like nothing happened," the elf narrowed her eyes, "Lili is right, Mr. Cranel, you are indecisive. And even worse, you're a liar."

Cold be damned, she couldn't sit there. Bell had known this whole time but had said nothing! She stood up and began pacing.

"You went out into Orario with me that day during the tournament. We went shopping, and before that, we travelled the world together. I even kissed you…twice! And still…you never said anything," her eyes started to get wet, "Don't you realize that this matters, Bell?"

"Well…I…"

"Do you ever think about what other people are thinking?"

"Of course!"

"Really?" Ryuu stopped to look at him, "Then, why didn't you ever tell me?" Her hands curled into fists, "You know how important something like this is to me."

Bell did know. He understood that elves did not do physical affection very well. He also knew Ryuu's past and history. The original people that Ryuu trusted, Alise and Syr, were both gone. Ryuu was doing better, but she was still recovering her sense of self. And in part of that, she reached her hand out to tell Bell that she still respected him. She left Orario to travel the world and help him. She bore her entire being to him and did the most terrifying thing possible; she allowed herself to be vulnerable. His response was to hide what he knew. That being said…

"You hurt me too, Ryuu…you almost told Ais," responded Bell, "You almost told people about Alfia."

"And maybe she deserves to know…" began Ryuu. She noticed that Bell was running away, again, but was too worked up to care. At Bell's tilted head, her eyes narrowed, "Alfia didn't just hurt me. She held all of Orario hostage. Her, and the mad God she was working with, almost brought the city to ruin!" Her voice began to rise, "It wasn't just Ardee that died. Lots of people from Loki Familia died too. Don't you think the Sword Princess deserves to know?"

"Why does it matter?" asked Bell.

"Excuse me?"

"Why does it matter that I'm Alfia's nephew? Why does everyone deserve to know that?" Bell started to ramp up, "Why does everyone keep thinking that they get to know everything about me?"

Ryuu frowned. Bell continued.

"Everyone keeps trying to butt in and ask me questions!" Bell threw his hands in the air, "I didn't ask for this; I didn't ask for people to obsess over me!"

"Bell…" began Ryuu. He did not hear her.

"I just wanted to be an adventurer! I just wanted to do my best for my Familia!" Bell continued his rant, a year of pent-up frustration leaking out. He always tried his best to keep his emotions in, but multiple days of fighting for his life had taken their toll.

"Why does that mean that everyone gets to know that my Aunt was a member of Hera Familia?" asked Bell. The question was to no one, but everyone heard. Bell turned to find a crowd watching him. His and Ryuu's discussion had gotten so loud that it woke up the rest of their party.

The rest of their friends gathered around their lead adventurers. At the mention of Hera Familia, everyone's mouths dropped. Some had been in the city during the days of Evilus, but some knew the name of Alfia: Ais and Aisha. The Amazon had narrowed eyes into serpent-like slits, while the Sword Princess just stared at Bell. Underneath the scrutiny of everyone present, the boy called Bell Cranel panicked. He did not want to have this conversation; he could not have it. The watching eyes were too much. So, he ran away into the Dungeon. He needed space if only a little bit. Immediately, Ais and Ryuu took after him.

Before anyone else could follow, there was a loud clanking sound. Everyone turned to find Urashima Taro bashing his arms together.

"Whatever happened to Bell, we are going to have to trust those three to figure it out. We are still in the Dungeon, correct?" said the young man.

Lili nodded, "Mister Urashima is correct. We must believe that those three will be fine. They are the best adventurers in our party, and they are not stupid; they will come back to us."

Lili only said those things because she had to. Inwardly, she hated that she was not there at the moment to comfort Bell. She was supposed to be his supporter! But he just kept running away!

Finally, it was Elwin who turned to Aisha, "You know what they were talking about, right?" asked the half-elf, "You know who this Alfia person is?"

Aisha nodded, "Who she was, anyway."

Lili nodded, "That confirms what Lili knows."

"You knew about this Lil Bit?" asked Welf.

Lili shook her head, "Only that he had learned about his family recently."

Otohime's eyes widened, her mind unusually perceptive, "So when Hermes went to talk to him…."

"He was showing Bell his past," said Welf.

Daphne turned back to Aisha, confused about the Hermes connection, "Why does your God know so much about Bell Cranel?"

Aisha shrugged, "I don't know, I don't ask. Why do you think I'm here instead of travelling with them?"

"To protect Lady Haruhime," replied Mikoto.

Aisha nodded, "That too. But also, because we don't trust each other. So, for now, I remain."

***

Also in the desert, watching the expedition party, was the banshee Xenos. Her name, for now, was Nysa. She watched over the desert party, waiting for them to slip up. She saw the little elf that smiled in her dreams, but she wasn't supposed to focus on that right now. Nysa was supposed to watch and see if any party members split and went off on their own. That was the order she was given by her King. That was the plan created by their top strategist, Scipio the Swamp Warden.

When she saw the three adventurers run off into the night, she frowned. She was hoping that the little elf was the one who would run away. Instead, she got two blondes and the boy with white hair. The blonde with the long hair…was this jealousy Nysa was feeling? Nysa frowned, but then she smiled. She knew the one with the long blonde hair; Nysa could capture and interrogate her. The banshee would remember, even if she had to tear those memories out from everyone around her.

Behind Nysa was a group of anubites. These walking jackal monsters wielded stone weapons in the shapes of axes and clubs. They had padded feet and paw-like hands. Their snout faces led back to beady eyes, and they were covered in black fur. They were a larger, more agile variant of the kobolds found on the upper floors in many ways. They each had high damage potential, known to swing weapons and bite at their opponents.

This specific group of monsters was doubly particular because of the ethereal collars around their necks. They glowed purple, just like the more substantive collar Nysa had. A magical creation, a gift from their benefactor, Nysa's collar was made from actual metal and siren essence. It allowed her to extend her will to other monsters around her. A unique item, it only worked with the Xenos because only the Xenos could understand the mindset of a monster.

Nysa's current state only lets her control a maximum of twenty monsters at a time. She was at her limit with the anubites, and if her focus wavered for a moment, they would turn on her. This limited her own combat capabilities, but the rewards were boundless instead. Apparently, the collar was an enhancement of the same collars used by monster tamers. They were reclaiming themselves and freeing the Xenos from the shackles of tyranny. At least, that's what they told the Xenos, who hadn't picked a side yet.

Nysa didn't care about propaganda, though. The only thing she cared about was the little elf of her dreams. The same one that was waiting for her just over those dunes. But first, she had a rabbit to take care of.

"Let's go," whispered Nysa. All twenty-one monsters took off at a sprint.

***

Bell shouldn't have run. Why did he always do this? Why was he such a coward? How was he supposed to get stronger if all he did was run from his problems? He was supposed to be better than this! He was supposed to have grown this year! And here he was…running away like a fool.

The first one to catch him in the desert cold was Ais. The Sword Princess forcefully tackled him to the ground. In Ais's mind, she was doing this to make sure Bell didn't freeze. It was still an hour or two till the sun came up, and the temperature was dangerously low. She also wanted to make sure that Bell didn't run off to anywhere else. This was the Dungeon, and no matter his emotions, he had to keep himself in control. So Ais held him to the ground until he settled. Bell tried thrashing in her grip, but he was no match for her level six strength even with all his enhanced stats.

In the tumult of Bell's mind, it was her voice that cut through.

"Bell, you need to calm down," said Ais, head bent close to his.

Slowly, Bell came back to them. He felt the tears stream down his face.

'Why am I like this?' asked Bell to himself, 'Why am I so weak? I need to stop letting people save me!'

"Bell, is there anything I can do?" asked Ais.

Ryuu stood a couple feet away, unsure of what to do. She had followed Bell on instinct, but her deep thoughts said that she was just acting jealous. The elf was only looking to spend more time with the boy she loved. She was being terribly greedy, and she hated herself for it.

"Leave me alone!" cried Bell, "Why did you chase me? I thought you would hate me!"

"Hate you?" Ais tilted her head.

Bell wanted to bury his head, "My aunt killed your Familia members."

Ais frowned, "She did. But you didn't. I said it wasn't any of my business; remember Bell? I'll wait until you want to talk."

Ais stood up and carried Bell with her to make sure her bunny didn't keep running. She held him close, frowning. Then Ais began to squeeze tight. She knew that hugs were a way to comfort someone. This went on for ten seconds before Ais noticed that Bell didn't appear to be breathing.

"Ais! Squeezing too tight!" said Bell.

The Sword Princess slackened her grip, "Sorry."

"It's ok," Bell looked to the ground, "Ummm, can you put me down, Ais?"

Ais frowned, "And you won't run away again?"

Bell turned a deep shade of red, "I promise."

Ais seemed to study him for another minute before she finally put him down. Finally, she looked between Ryuu and Bell. She turned around and walked a little bit away. When she had moved a couple feet, she turned around. Ais was going to pretend not to hear what happened next.

Ryuu looked at the ground. She was unsure of what to say next. Saying an apology now would feel hollow and meaningless. Also, she was still angry at Bell for hiding what he knew. These were Ryuu's emotions, and they were important to her. She didn't want to just go crawling back. Alise had once told her that she was better than that.

"Ryuu…I don't know what to say," began Bell.

Ryuu sighed, "Then don't. I don't know what to say either, Bell. So, for now, we keep moving. I need some time to think."

Bell didn't seem happy with that answer, but Ryuu didn't care for once. She was tired…so unbelievably tired right now.

The elf turned and started to walk back to camp. She had gone all of ten feet before her pointy ears twitched. Ais drew her blade. Something was approaching. Then, the anubites crested the hill. They moved like shadows across dunes. Within seconds, they were upon them.

They came with a storm of howls and snarls. Their weapons traced arcs and crashed into the ground. Dust and debris scattered as they missed their adversaries. These monsters were no match for their opponents. Now that they weren't busy fighting to protect their allies, these first-class adventurers were going all out. Ais had already cut six of the monsters in half. She hadn't been touched once. Ryuu and Bell had downed four more, but they kept getting in each other's way. Ryuu had stomped on Bell's foot at one second, and Bell had elbowed her in the stomach another.

They took a precious moment to forcefully not look each other in the eye, which almost caused their deaths. They both took a hit to the side that sent them flying. It was their status that turned a killing blow into a bruise. After that, there was a quick blur. The two picked themselves up off the ground to find the rest of the monsters turned into dust. Ais glared at the piles of ash.

"Ais, what's wrong?"

"They hurt you. I'm not letting people do that anymore."

Meanwhile, Ryuu stared off into the night. She pointed a finger out.

"Over there! I see something stand at the top of the hill!" cried out the elf. There was a shadow watching them. When Ais and Bell turned to pursue, Ryuu shook her head, "We need to get back to the others!"

"What about the monster?" asked Ais.

"We'll deal with it later!" Ryuu took off back towards camp. Bell was on her heels immediately. Ais stared at the shadow monster for a second longer, something nagging at her brain. Then, she turned to follow Bell. She did promise to protect him after all.

When they got back to camp, they didn't find anything wrong. The others had just been sitting around, apparently listening to Aisha. When three of their adventurers ran back, low on breath, they jumped to their feet and assumed their battle positions.

"Are we under attack?" asked Mikoto, who was standing in front of Haruhime.

"Wait…no monsters have shown up?" asked Ryuu, surveying the campsite.

Daphne shook her head, "Were we supposed to be attacked?"

"We were," replied Ais.

Lili snorted, "You were in the Dungeon, Miss Ais. It's normal to be attacked when you're on your own."

Bell shook his head, "There was something else, though. Those monsters were acting like they were taking orders. And there was another one standing a bit farther away."

"Did you catch a look at it?" asked Elwin.

"No, but something was familiar about it," responded Ais.

Lefiya tilted her head, "Familiar?"

Ais nodded, "Something about the monster's aura…the way it held itself."

"Do you think it's a Xenos?" continued Cassandra.

Urashima sighed, "It's possible. We were sent here to investigate."

Ouka crossed his arms and grunted in agreement. Then he let a breath of air out his nose, "For now, though, we should try and get back to bed. I'm still tired."

The big man said goodnight, nodded to Chigusa and went back inside his tent. Welf yawned and followed. Ura and Elwin both made sure to say goodnight to Oto and Lefiya before they left as well. The two women made to go into their tent, but the little elf paused at the flap. She took a moment to look behind her and out at the desert. Was something watching her?

The rest made their way back into the tents. Mikoto volunteered to take Ryuu's place on guard duty, and Haruhime volunteered to join her. Ryuu tossed a look at Bell, who tried to give her a nod, then she continued on inside. Ais did smile at him, though, which made him feel a bit happier. Everyone gave him a bit of a funny look, but that was tomorrow's problem. For now, he was tired. He went inside to try and get back to sleep.

***

The monster known as Nysa ducked back behind the rock she was currently hiding behind. When her anubite minions had been totally decimated, she had cursed for a long while. Finding enough monsters that were easily controllable was always going to be difficult. And it was going to be more difficult to find a way to replace them. Scipio, who she was currently partnered with, was not going to be happy with her. He had probably told her at one point which adventurers were strong and which were weak, but she didn't care about that. The only one that truly mattered was the elf girl with long orange hair and enchanting blue eyes. She was the only one that mattered.

Nysa was so caught up in her thought that she didn't see the massive imperator scorpion sneaking up on her. Five meders across and two high, these beasts were near the top of the food chain down in desert floors. There were only a couple monsters in the area that could take this beast in a one-on-one duel. It was genuinely lethal.

As the beast brought back its tail for a lightning-quick attack, Nysa swept a clawed hand up. The tail came off at its stem. It fell to the ground with a dull thud. Before the beast could howl in pain, the banshee had opened her mouth to unnatural proportions. Then, she bit down and swallowed the creature's head. From there, it was a simple procedure to reach down and rip out its magic stone. As the monster's carapace disintegrated to ash, Nysa studied the rock in front of her.

She looked between the campsite and the stone. Then, she grew a wicked grin. She held the magic stone in her closed fist. The only thing that mattered was the little elf, but there was another obstacle in Nysa's way. There was a half-elf with jade green hair that had to be dealt with first.

***

The following day, the party began to make its way through the twenty-ninth floor. They marched alongside the river, careful to maintain a distance of at least ten feet from the shore. Occasionally, more anubites would attack, along with some scorpion-men (bottom-half scorpion, top-half man) and wadjets. Wadjets were flying cobra monsters that spat acidic venom and could use a hypnotic gaze. They were incredibly dangerous to the party. For the most part, though, they were handled. Mikoto slowly became more accustomed to the monsters around her, and her 'Black Crow' skill became more viable.

By mid-morning, they had made their way halfway along the floor, by Lili's estimation. The ease of movement was helped by how straightforward it was. All one had to do was keep moving downstream. There was only one incident worth talking about.

When they had made their way three-quarters of the march across the floor, something extraordinary happened. While they had made a quick stop for lunch, a monster came into their vision. A great bird of flames began to soar across the sky. Behind it trailed a tail of surreal light. The creature's feathers seemed to burn. The fire started as a bright orange near the center and shifted colours as it went. It passed through red, yellow, green, purple, and finally blue at the tips of its wings.

"I don't believe it," murmured Ais. The potato puff she had been eating fell half-finished from her mouth.

Around her, Aisha, Lefiya, and Ryuu took to their feet. All four women, who were tried and true adventurers, stared in awe and wonder at the great bird. The image of beauty before them left them astounded. Even the other adventurers, who didn't fully comprehend what was going on, felt a sense of splendour wash over them.

"What is it?" asked Otohime, finally coming back to her senses.

"It's a phoenix," replied Ryuu, "The rarest monster in the Dungeon…it is…beautiful."

Indeed, there were more tales of the mythical phoenix than any other monster in the Dungeon. Its legends were immeasurable but confirmed sightings of the beast could be counted on one hand. Often, if it was seen, it was too far away to hunt. This was an incredibly lucky moment to see it so close.

Lili smiled, "Incredible. A shame we have to kill it."

Everyone turned to stare at the little prum, looks of shock on their face. No one felt right about killing such a beautiful creature. However, before they could voice their protest, Urashima nodded along.

"Even in the Far East, we have heard of the miracle properties of the Phoenix Feather. The most valuable item in the world, sitting in front of us," explained the bodyguard.

"Is it really that incredible?" asked Welf, skeptical. He didn't like the idea of trying to bring that bird down. It would be challenging, and it almost seemed like a crime to destroy something so beautiful.

"The stories say that the last one used," answered Bell, "was involved in the philosopher's stone."

That brought silence to the group. They all knew who Fels was, and more importantly, they knew what the skeleton was capable of. They also knew why he was a walking talking skeleton.

"We're going to bring down that bird," finished Ouka. He looked down and smiled at the woman next to him, "You can do it, Chigusa."

The little woman felt her heart race. She had to bring the bird down.

Bows were grabbed and handed out. While that happened, Mikoto took flight. Before she left, Haruhime made sure to tie her scarf nice and tight around Mikoto's waist. The Black Crow's black wings carried her into the air. Her job was not to engage directly but to shepherd the monster closer to everyone else. Lefiya and Aisha readied their magic, which both had distance and power behind them. Urashima and Otohime both strung traditional Far East bows and readied special long-distance arrows. Anyone not getting their ranged attacks ready was preparing a defensive circle.

Haruhime watched the skies as black met with an iridescent rainbow of colour. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to keep track. The only problem was that Mikoto disappeared in a fountain of lights. The only sign of her success was that the monster seemed to be coming closer.

"Is everyone ready?" cried Lili.

"Yes!" was the reply.

After what seemed like an hour of waiting, the phoenix was in range. The arrows started to fly, and magic blasted away. Nothing hit though, the bird just banked away to the right. As it passed overhead, it flapped its wings and flames came raining down. Bits of fire fell in the shape of teardrops. Wherever they touched and turned to glass.

The party had to try dodging instead of fighting for the second, and no one could get a clear shot. Mikoto was trying to keep the damn thing in one area, but she was already getting burned from being in the phoenix's mere proximity.

That was when Ryuu had enough. She brought out her wooden sword, no longer caring if it burned, and swung in short arcs.

"Wind Blade!"

At Ryuu's call, a green slash blasted forth. It cut through the air and clipped the phoenix. Where it had hit, feathers got cut away. This was Ryuu's new quick cast magic. Much like firebolt, it wasn't the most powerful but perfectly suited for Ryuu's combat style. She started cutting through the air with her Wind Blades. Each one worked to pen in the phoenix. At this point, it was only a matter of time.

The next thing to hit it was Chigusa's arrows. She stood still, took the bird's flames, and aimed true. While her hair and clothing got singed, she could nail the bird on its other wing. The phoenix lost altitude and began to slow down. All that was needed was the final push.

"Arcs Ray!"

Lefiya's magical shot raced out and slammed into the bird's chest. Her aim was true, and the archers of Wishe were with her. The magic went into the phoenix's chest and burst out from the other side. The giant, majestic beast let out a great caw as it fell. It slammed into the sand; its wings were curled around itself. Its flames began to flicker out until it turned white and dead.

As Lili and Haruhime began to take the great beast apart, they dug and dug until they found its sizeable magic stone. That wasn't what they really wanted, though. The drop-item was worth considerably more than the beast. After it disappeared, everyone in the party prayed. They searched through the sand until Bell found a single phoenix feather, still shifting and glimmering in the light. Lili was ready to burst from her joy. She waved the all-powerful feather in the air.

"Master Bell! Look at it! Isn't it beautiful?" asked the prum.

Bell's eyes widened. He thought that Lili would have wanted nothing to do with him. Now that people were learning about his family, he was ready for lots of anger and hate. Lili didn't care, though. Lili herself did not have a beautiful history. All that mattered to her was the here and now. That said, she would still need to talk to Bell later. Something was pissing her off. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of approaching desert lizards.

The party then realized that their battle may have attracted more monsters. Lili stuffed the feather into her pack, and they resumed their march through the Dungeon. They cleared the twenty-ninth floor and began moving through the thirtieth.

As they marched, Otohime came to a startling realization, "Hey! Aren't we supposed to meet some of those Xenos creatures down here?"

Lili looked back at the Dragon Princess and raised an eyebrow, "You're just remembering this now?"

Otohime frowned, "Well, I've been busy! And sweaty! It's hard to remember anything in all this heat!"

This was true. Everyone had marks of perspiration on them. Even with the cooling cloth they wore, the heat was still practically unbearable. It was the worst for Lefiya and Urashima. The little elf refused to wear anything besides her traditional elvish clothing, and the stuffy outfit did not help keep the heat out. Meanwhile, the bodyguard had to constantly apply unique cooling stones to his metal arms. If he weren't careful, he'd feel the metallic surface start to burn at his flesh.

The only ones who seemed relaxed were Aisha and Welf. Aisha's combination of skimpy clothing and amazon blood helped her stave off the humidity. Meanwhile, Welf was a smith. He worked in the forge day in and day out. While not technically the same, there were still enough similarities that he had built a kind of tolerance to heat like this.

Haruhime's tail hung limply next to her as she panted, "Lady Lili, where will we be meeting with the Xenos? Is it somewhere close?"

"At a nearby oasis," replied Lili. She studied a map of the thirtieth floor. After glancing at her surroundings, she nodded, "Lili is going to need space and some quiet."

Her Familia immediately understood what was happening. They took a step back and motioned for everyone else to do the same.

"Surrounding map, be known to me. Show me the world how the bird sees it. Reveal my enemies and my allies. Topocartoa!"

An ethereal orange image spread out around the prum. An uncountable number of magical lights took shape and moved. Eventually, they settled into a set of rising slopes and valleys. A bit farther away, some of them dipped into a circular pool with trees. Lili walked between her position at the center and the pool.

"Lili believes this is the oasis that we should be looking for," continued the prum. She then measured out a distance and direction, "If the party continues along this path, heading straight, we should arrive at the rendezvous point in an hour."

Daphne held up a hand, "Excuse me, what is this?"

Lili looked confused for a second before looking back down at the glowing map she was standing in. She made a sound of comprehension.

"This is Lili's new magic that she acquired. It allows Lili to generate a map of the surrounding area up to a certain distance. It is a topographic generator," explained the prum.

Ais blinked twice and then said, "Not even Finn can do that."

Lili blushed from the unexpected praise. The Sword Princess was making it incredibly difficult to be angry! Lili was supposed to hate her, not be embarrassed!

"Quiet, everyone! Let's get moving! The Xenos will be waiting for us!"

They continued their march, now moving into the heart of the desert. The river retreated out of sight, and Bell felt his anxiety grow. They were in dangerous territory now, and if Lili's magic was off, or if they got taken from their path, then there was a high chance that they would die down here. Bell maintained his position in the rearguard, Otohime walking beside him. The Princess glanced over at his worried face. He was not going to make this easy.

"So, you've made a couple mistakes recently," began Otohime, "Nothing too bad, by the looks of it, but still, mistakes have been made. And now, someone is hurting because of you," she smiled, "What do you do next?"

Bell frowned, "I wasn't the only one who messed up, though. Ryuu's the one who slipped up first."

Otohime rolled her eyes, "That's a child's answer. You're better than that Bell," she placed a hand on his shoulder, "You're a good person; you just need to stop hiding so much."

Bell looked away, "I don't know what you mean."

"Oh no, of course not. It's not like you've been hiding the fact that your aunt was a dangerous criminal. Or that Ryuu kissed you, twice, in a drunken stupor."

The boy flinched, "You all heard that too?"

"I did," Otohime shrugged, "I don't know if anyone else heard, though. No one else looked awake."

"You can't tell anyone," said Bell.

Otohime snorted, "I won't shout it out loud, but I'm not keeping secrets, Bell. Especially not from Ura. If I think that he needs to know, he's going to learn."

Bell pouted but began to consider his position. He replied, "That's fair…I just…wanted something for myself, for once."

"Bell, take it from me, having something unique and entirely yours isn't all it's cracked up to be," she looked up to the Dungeon ceiling, "Neither is knowing about your family history."

"What do you mean?"

Otohime arched an eyebrow, "My family name has been longer than the Age of the Gods, Bell. Our history is soaked in blood," she shivered in the heat, "It terrifies me to think that I almost stayed there. That I almost became like my family…that I still could."

"No, you won't! No one here cares about your family!" responded Bell, "And no one would ever think badly about you because of them!"

As soon as the sentence left his mouth, Bell realized he had been tricked. It was always easy to forget that Otohime had survived a court of intrigue growing up. When it came to studying and books, she failed miserably. She giggled into her hand as his own words played against them. After a moment of this, the Dragon Princess smiled.

"Bell, we don't hold your family against you," she frowned, "That said, I think you might have offended some people."

Bell tilted his head, "Offended them?"

Otohime nodded. "For thinking that they would care about who Alfia is."

"How do you know?" asked Bell.

"Because you offended me."

Otohime didn't see a need to carry on the conversation then. The two walked in contemplative silence. They scanned behind for monsters and worked to get rid of anything that threatened their friends.

Eventually, Bell said, "I'm sorry."

It took a second, but then Otohime's smile lit up like the sun. "Thank you, Bell!"

Near the front of the party, a smith moved out of position. He went to walk beside an elf. Ryuu was pointedly not looking backwards; instead, she focused on what lay ahead.

Welf walked next to her, careful to match her stride. Before he could articulate a thought, Ryuu said, "You think I should apologize. Well, maybe I should, but he needs to apologize too. He's the one who messed up."

When Welf opened his mouth, she continued, "Maybe I'm being immature about this, but I don't care. I think I deserve that, just this once. While the rest of you get to act like fools all the time, I want to be a woman. Is that too much to ask?"

Welf shook his head, only slightly comprehending what he heard. Not that Ryuu noticed.

"For once in my life, can I at least pretend to be a girl in love?" Her eyes would've watered if the heat hadn't dried them up already.

"I know it'll never work out. For one, I am much older than him. Second, he loves the Sword Princess, even if he refuses to admit it. I get it; I don't get Bell. But can't I at least pretend to have a shot? Or act like a girl who just got her heart broken. Can't I act that way? Just this once…."

Welf took her free hand in his own, "You don't have to act that way, Ryuu. You can just be that girl."

Ryuu's throat closed up. Why did she have to lose every time?

Even though she knew that the others would see, she leaned into Welf's body. There was no romance here, just a need for something. Some intangible feeling that would tell her that she was enough. She longed for the comfort of someone else, even someone who was taken. She just wanted to be held and be told that she was loved. Why was that always too much to ask?

Her moment of pity was broken when a familiar high-pitched voice began shouting from above.

"Bell! Haruhime! You're here!"

With that, a little vouivre girl descended.

Character Profile:

Ryuu Leon:

Status:

Strength: F 465 Defense: F 430 Dexterity: E 538 Agility: E 546 Magic: F 478

Hunter: F

Abnormal Resistance: F

Magic Resistance: G

Swordsman: H

Magic:

Luminous Wind: Wide area attack magic. Wind and light element

Noah Heal: Healing magic. The effect depends on the environment. Effect rises in forested areas.

Wind Blade: No chant magic that can be used quickly.

Skill:

Fairy Serenade: Increases the effects of magic and the effect rises at night.

Mind Load: Increases user’s strength stat when attacking by using mind. It has an active trigger.

Aero Mana: Increases user’s attack power the faster they’re running.

Chapter Text

As soon as Weine saw Haruhime, the renard was dive-bombed. She was tackled and hugged and carried by the little vouivre. The renard was surprised by Weine's strength and was reminded that many people were looking to grow and become stronger. Weine followed this by quickly jumping to hug the rest of Hestia Familia. Even the newest members got hugs, which Otohime received with enthusiasm. In the middle of Weine's hug, the little dragon girl's face scrunched up, and her nose twitched. She began sniffing at the Dragon Princess's chest and then moved around the rest of her body.

"Weine?" asked Bell.

Everyone stopped to stare at the Xenos girl. Bell reached out a hand to pull her back; Weine looked up at the Dragon Princess. She had a large grin on her face and began bouncing on the balls of her feet. Weine turned to Lyd and pointed at Otohime.

"She smells like me! She's like my…my…." Weine frowned, "What's the word for someone that is like you? That is related to you?"

Lyd made a laughing sound, "A sibling Weine? Brother or sister?"

Weine nodded and threw her hands up, "She smells like me! So, she's like my sister!"

"Oh…ummmm," began Haruhime, "Lady Weine, it's not exactly like…."

"We can be if you want," Otohime bent down to pat Weine on the head, "I have had many sisters; what's one more?"

Later, when Urashima asked why, Otohime guessed that her most recent transformation had left the stench of the dragon on her. Weine, with her enhanced sense of smell, had been able to pick up on that. The action had made the former Far Eastern Princess overjoyed. The more people in her life, the better.

"Yay!"

Weine gave Otohime another hug.

Once introductions were over, Weine settled herself next to Bell. She pulled him close and made sure to sit between him and Ais. Every minute or so, she'd cast a mean look at the Sword Princess, and Ais bore it silently. She did deserve all this, after all.

The rest gathered in a type of circle and ate lunch. It was quiet and awkward with the non-Hestia Familia members of the party unsure how to treat these talking monsters. They had only met these monsters once or twice before, and even if they were willing to work with them, it was hard to make sense of the situation. The Xenos didn't seem to mind at all, with all of them happily making conversation amongst themselves. Bell counted a dozen, Xenos. The number seemed off, so he asked where Fear and the rest were.

"They've got their own missions and assignments right now," responded Lyd, "They're trying to find as many newly birthed Xenos as they can."

"Why the recruiting rush?" asked Welf.

"To keep them away from the other Xenos," replied Lyd.

Everyone took the phrase, 'other Xenos' in with quiet contemplation. Something was going on in the Dungeon, and it sounded terribly wrong.

Bell frowned, "Lyd, there's something I need to tell you. There was a Xenos above ground a week ago. He called himself Petron. Did you know him?"

Lyd scratched his chin and nodded, "I did know him. A loup-garou, if I remember correctly? A noticeably quiet but arrogant Xenos who did not listen to others."

Bell nodded, "He said that he served 'a greater master' who remembered my failures. Was he talking about Freya? Or was there someone else that he worked for?"

The group of Xenos there all looked away. Some form of melancholy settled over the group, and many balled their hands into fists. Even the ever-optimistic Weine lost her energy. Her grip on Bell tightened even more. Bell could feel her nails start to dig into his skin.

"Things have gotten intense down here, Bellichi," said Lyd. "Lots of Xenos were angry after what happened last year. A new Xenos started to take control…."

Bell's eyes narrowed, "A new Xenos? Lyd, what happened down here? You're making it sound like there's some sort of evil Xenos."

Lyd shook his massive lizard head, "Not evil, just angry. Xenos that are tired of what happens and looking to make a more radical change. They're like how Gros used to be…but more intense."

Ais frowned but said nothing; this wasn't her place. She had to keep thoughts about monsters to herself for now. The only thing that mattered now was to offer her support to whatever Bell decided. He knew more about these monsters-No! They're called Xenos! -than she did.

"What they are up to?" asked Lili.

A group of radical Xenos was not something that sounded simple. In fact, it was probably the worse thing that could happen. With Freya aboveground, and this catastrophe waiting to happen underground, Hestia Familia was about to fight a war on two fronts. There was no way that they weren't going to help their monster friends. So, Lili did the only thing she knew and began to plan. Her job now was to figure out which war would be fought first and how to get it done. However, this meant gathering all the necessary information.

"Do they have a name?" said Lili.

Lyd made a nodding motion, "Their group is called the Sun Seekers. Their leader calls himself Typhon."

Bell and Haruhime frowned. It was the renard who spoke, "How does he know about that name?"

"That name?" asked Lett. The goblin's frown got deeper.

"Typhon is the name of the King of Monster in the myth of creation," continued Haruhime, "He worked to tear down the Gods and almost succeeded."

"So, what can we do?" was Bell's immediate question. "I'm guessing we're here for a reason."

Weine responded next, "There are some other Sun Seekers here!"

"Why? Where are the rest? How many are there?" asked Ryuu.

"We think they're here for you," explained Lyd, "We've been tracking them for weeks, and they only began to move after the tournament. As for how many, twice the amount of us, if I remember correctly."

"But how many are here on this floor?" asked Ryuu.

Lyd held up one hand. "Two, his top general and one of his most powerful aides. They're a swamp warden and a war shadow," replied the lizard.

"What are they like?" asked Ais. Something was familiar about the monster they saw before. She recognized the way it stood.

"They're both fairly new monsters, but they're powerful. As soon as they were birthed, they made a mad rush to eat as many magic stones as possible," responded Lyd.

"What else?" Ais's stare was intense. "What about the war shadow?"

"The war shadow is a variant," said Lyd, "It has a female appearance. In fact, it's so different that Fels labelled it as a new species, like the 'Black Minotaur.'"

"What's the species?" asked Lefiya. A pit sat in her stomach, but she could not say why.

"He calls it a banshee."

***

A new crowd of monsters trailed behind Nysa. She did what she could to find replacement servants. Unlike before, where she had kept a swarm of anubites, now she had a varied group behind her. Wadjets, scorpion men, desert lizards, and griffins followed her, making their usual monster sounds. She wanted to make sure to recuperate her power before confronting Scipio. The swamp monster was not the forgiving sort of beast.

In a set of sandy ruins, a squad of monsters patrolled the outskirts. Their necks glowed purple, and there were many more than what Nysa could control. The monster slaving collars worked based on potential and intellect—the more brilliant the monster, the more they could handle. Nysa's brainpower extended as far as a single-minded focus on the dreams that haunted her. Scipio, on the other hand, was easily the most cunning of the Sun Seekers. He could control up to seventy-five monsters when he wanted to. That was also per collar. Larger beasts, which had a more significant life force, could wear multiple collars to increase their numbers. For now, though, Scipio wore one collar. All he needed was enough enslaved beasts to keep himself safe.

The monsters stared at Nysa as she walked inside, their eyes glowing a collective purple. The banshee left her own monsters outside as she walked in to meet with her partner. She did not care about all the monsters waiting outside; they were beneath her. Scipio was here as the brains of the operation. Nysa was the muscle. She could crush him with a wave of her hand.

She found the lumbering beast squatting in front of some large piece of bark. It was covered in light dust marks from fragments of quartz. It marked out a basic map of the desert floors, which Scipio had had market out a week ahead of time. Multiple monsters and Xenos had been used to get these maps. However, the timeframe had been limited, so the map was incredibly basic. It had no details except a red line traced along the river, which then cut off towards an oasis.

Nysa glided up to Scipio. "So, they are waiting there?" asked the War Shadow.

The swamp warden general gave a grunt in reply.

"And they're meeting with those human lovers?"

Another grunt. Then the moss shifted, and Nysa felt something like a gaze bore into her. "You failed. You attacked too early. You picked the wrong targets," said Scipio.

His voice came out like waves washing over gravel.

Nysa scowled, "How was I supposed to know that those random three just so happened to be the most powerful?"

It was hard to see the monster's eyes under all the vegetation, but Nysa still felt the deadpan stare it gave her. Then it seemed to lower part of its body, and a gust of air seemed to pop out. Nysa realized that the monster was sighing.

"You are supposed to be one of the smarter ones. Instead, you are obsessed with the little elf girl," said Scipio. It considered its map.

Nysa frowned, "I need to talk to her! She's important to me…somehow."

A sound that could've been a snort erupted from the swamp monster. Its massive head shook back and forth.

"Your fixation is strange. Perhaps you are the human lover now?"

Nysa smiled, but it was much too broad. From a leather bag she kept draped over her shoulder, she produced a large magic stone.

"I won't be a human lover for long, though," said the banshee.

Scipio contemplated the magic stone. Then, it was silent. After a moment of thought, a new noise erupted from it. This was the sound of laughter, deep in the desert ruins.

***

Back with the adventurers and the Xenos, who weren't looking to start a war, Lefiya felt her throat close up. The second the word banshee left Lyd's mouth, her vision got fuzzy. When did this hot Dungeon floor feel so cold? Why was it so hard to breathe and to focus? Her heart thrummed in her chest. She heard a voice, but it sounded like it came from behind a screen. She felt a gentle touch on her hand; it was warm.

"Lefiya," came the voice. It sounded like a whisper.

"Lefiya," repeated the voice. It was closer. A green blob came into Lefiya's vision.

"I need you to breathe for me."

That's right, she needed to breathe. The blob came into focus, its mouth began to move.

"Can you try breathing with me?"

Lefiya tried. Slowly, her throat opened. She matched her breath to the blob that slowly came into focus. It had jade green hair and glasses. Right…this was Elwin, who was important. She grabbed the hand that was touching her shoulder and squeezed tight. She reached out for the other one, and it answered. She felt his palms in hers, and something settled in her body. She closed her eyes, breathed deeply like how Lady Riveria had taught her, and when she opened them, she saw everyone's faces back in focus. They all watched her in worry. The attention made her blush, and then she remembered that she was holding Elwin's hands.

She snatched them away and almost fell backwards. As she tried to catch her balance, she noticed Elwin grinning at her. The smile was not teasing, though. It was soft and heartfelt. Even still, Lefiya felt her frustration grow.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"Nothing, I'm just happy your ok," Elwin's face turned a beet red, "Ummm…."

Then Lefiya heard something extraordinary. It sounded like Elwin said something in elvish.

"You speak Elvish?" asked Otohime, "I thought you didn't know any elf culture."

"Mama taught me some phrases. To try and keep me connected to my culture," replied the half-elf.

"What did you tell her?" asked Ais.

Elwin refused to answer, and so did Lefiya. However, Ryuu understood and almost fainted but kept her mouth shut. What he had said was clearly meant just for Lefiya.

The best translation to any non-elf culture was, 'I hope you are ok, and I'm here if you need me.' What the phrase actually translated to was, 'Our roots are of one tree, our branches intertwined, the same current flows between our blood, may there be peace upon your troubled mind.' The saying was an old one, deeply set in tradition. It was also a saying that denoted a remarkably close relationship.

The elves were left alone to sort out their feelings, and the conversation was forcibly returned to the task at hand.

"So…Lyd, what do we do next?" asked Bell.

Lyd scratched his chin.

"Well, Bellichi, the first thing to do is a little recon. We know that the Sun Seekers are up to something, but we don't know what. The real problem, though, is that they usually spend all their time in the deep floors. Fels wants to know why they came up to the lower floors," replied the Lizardman, "Why are they hunting after you lot?"

The obvious answer was Freya, but better to make sure. Not to mention, if the silver-haired Goddess was behind all this, they needed to know why.

Bell nodded, "So, we'll split up and hunt down the Sun Seekers?"

Lyd shook his head, "Not hunting, scouting. Fels says that we know too little right now. He says that if we make a move now, the Sun Seekers might exterminate us."

Bell frowned. Before he could respond, Ais spoke up.

"What else can we do?"

The words surprised the Xenos. For a couple, the comments made their blood boil. While most didn't speak up, Lett responded.

"Too late to offer your help, girlie," said the goblin, "If you talked like this from the beginning, we wouldn't be in this mess. Gros and Ray would've been able to…."

Ais nodded, "You're right. But Riveria says that what matters most is what happens next. What can we do next?"

"Not turn your back when we need help," replied Lett.

Everyone winced, but Ais nodded as if it made perfect sense.

"What else?" asked the Sword Princess.

"We have to track the Sun Seekers, but we need protection!" exclaimed Weine.

The little dragon girl was distrustful of Ais, but she also remembered that she stayed her blade when the swordswoman could have killed her. And Weine knew that Ais Wallenstein was important to Bell. So, the Sword Princess got one more chance, for Bell's sake. But only one!

"I'll protect you all," declared Ais. The seriousness of her words reached through. Lett didn't like her, but he nodded. This declaration was followed by a moment of silence.

"So, where do we go next then?" asked Welf.

"Me, Weine, and Lett will lead three groups through this floor. We know that two of Typhon's top Seekers are here somewhere. The first group that finds them will then alert the other groups. We regroup afterwards and plan what to do next," explained Lyd. From a pouch at his hip, he produced a collection of oculi. They would be the means of communication.

"But we don't engage?" asked Urashima.

Lyd nodded.

"How should the groups be split?" asked Lili.

Lyd smiled, "Fels suggested that you make the groups Lililichi."

Lili frowned. Why were all these people so lazy? Every decision got left for Lili, and it was unfair! Even still, Lili began to make groups in her head. Just as she was about to answer, she was interrupted.

"I have a suggestion!" said Otohime, who raised her hand.

"Yes, Lady Otohime?" asked Lili with a quirked brow.

"We will need a base camp, correct? Well, I believe this to be the best spot, and I suggest that the Captain and Vice-Captain remain to guard our supplies!"

"Wait, what?"

"I cannot agree!"

Both Bell and Ryuu refused to acknowledge their feelings or each other. However, Lili nodded along. They needed their Captain and Vice-Captain at their absolute best, and that included how they worked together. If Ryuu and Bell fought together like they usually did, they could take on the top members of Freya Familia. Hestia Familia needed them to make amends.

"Lili concurs. Master Bell and Miss Ryuu will take care of supplies," said the prum. After that, she organized the teams.

Lyd led the first team and was going to check on the other side of the river. With him were a couple Xenos and Aisha, Mikoto, Haruhime, and Daphne. Team two was led by Lett, with Lefiya, Elwin, Welf, Cassandra, and Ouka tagging along. Their destination was a rocky canyon. Elwin refused to be on any team that wasn't Lefiya's, seeing as she was still shaken from earlier. Finally, there was Weine's group, with Ais, Otohime, Urashima, Chigusa, and Lili joining her. They were going to check some desert ruins-which Lili was excited to raid. Weine demanded that Otohime (her new sister) join them. She wanted Bell to, but he had to stay behind, unfortunately.

When the groups were decided, they set out towards their objectives. The adventurers left their food, drink, and extra supplies with Ryuu and Bell. The two watched the other groups walk off in silence before turning to each other. After a moment of awkward silence, they got busy and organized the campground. That only took so long, though. After that, they sat at separate parts of the camp and found something to do. Ryuu tended to her sword, and Bell read some maps and books on desert monsters.

Every once in a while, Bell would look up but then look back down. He didn't say anything, but his constant gaze caught Ryuu's attention. The elf sighed, her frustration building as she worked. The only problem was, she didn't know how to start. Thankfully, Bell Cranel was just stupid (or smart) enough to open his mouth.

"I'm sorry for earlier," said Bell. However, his face was confused. It seemed like he didn't totally understand what went wrong.

Ryuu bit her tongue and let out a breath from her nose.

"It's fine."

Bell frowned, "But it's not fine. I hurt you."

"And I hurt you. Let's call it even."

The boy shook his head, "I don't agree, though."

Ryuu grit her teeth, "Bell, do you even really understand what you're apologizing about? Or why I'm upset?"

Bell's response was to look at the ground. At his silence, Ryuu rolled her eyes. Bell was as quiet and indecisive as ever. The elf bent down to resume weapon maintenance, but Bell spoke again.

"I know why, but I don't understand it."

Ryuu glanced up, "What do you mean?"

"I know why you're upset. You…" Bell blushed, "you kissed me twice, and I never told you about it. I knew how you were feeling, but I kept it to myself. Those things are important to Ryuu, and I knew all that, but I said nothing. I should've talked to you about it."

Ryuu frowned, "Then what's the part that you don't understand?"

"Why you kissed me."

Ryuu's frown got deeper.

"Bell, it's not that hard to know why."

Now it was Ryuu's turn to blush.

"I did it because I'm in love with you."

Apparently, saying the thing once made it easier to repeat it. The words no longer held onto Ryuu's tongue. Instead, they fell off and into the air. They charged forward to meet the object of her affection.

"But why?"

"Why what?"

'Bell is very obstinate today,' thought Ryuu. The boy refused to give a steady answer on anything. Instead, he replied with vague half-truths.

"Why do you love a pathetic adventurer like me?"

Bell's question took a moment to process. A cold wave washed over Ryuu when she understood. She put her weapon down and made her way over to sit in front of the quiet boy. She reached out for his hands but hesitated. So, she drew back and sat on her knees. Things were becoming so much more difficult.

"Bell, why did you call yourself pathetic?"

Bell still refused to look at her. Instead, he drew random lines in the sand. He was quiet for a minute before he spoke again.

"Because I am." His hand dug into the white granules around him. "I'm still just the pathetic little kid who has to rely on others to rescue him."

These were the thoughts hidden deep inside Bell Cranel. At that moment, Ryuu's perspective changed. Before, he had been a hero in the making, like Alise. Bell was someone to follow into battle, an ideal to aspire to. These were no true, though. Those images of him in her head were fabricated, like the image of a hero Finn Deimne forged for himself.

No matter what her new friends and family told her, Ryuu was sure of one thing. She was a villain who had betrayed the ideals of Lady Astraea.  The Gale Wind had murdered all types of people, from commoners to Gods. She could never be a saviour or a hero. She could not be a standard of justice. Even if all the waitresses of the Hostess of Fertility, and all the members of Hestia Familia, worked together to tell her otherwise, she knew the truth of herself. At least, she knew how she saw the truth. Maybe, Bell was much the same. And none of them had ever noticed.

Ryuu frowned, "I don't know if I can convince you otherwise, but I don't think you're pathetic, Bell."

"But why do you love me?" asked Bell. Couldn't she understand? He had dragged her across half the world, all because he was too weak to protect the people he cared about. He was the reason that she had lost everything she cared about. He didn't deserve her love.

"I keep secrets from people, but I always try to get them to talk to me. I don't know how to deal with other people's feelings! And I always need to rely on everyone!" Bell's hands came up to clasp the sides of his head. He was not crying, but his emotions were boiling over. Days in the Dungeon had begun to take their toll.

Ryuu gave her softest smile. She reached out her hands to take his own. "Bell, those are just flaws. Everyone has some. Having flaws doesn't mean you don't deserve love."

"You haven't answered my question," responded Bell.

Ryuu sighed because he was right, of course. They had both spent enough time dodging questions. It was time for someone to take charge. Ryuu had hoped that Bell would be the first, but looking at him now, Ryuu remembered something very important. Bell was only fifteen years old. Not to mention, he had grown up in a very secluded lifestyle with only his grandfather for company. In many ways, Bell's social skills were as underdeveloped as the Sword Princess's.

"I love you because you never give up. You set yourself to your convictions, and you follow through on what you believe. I love you because you're willing to listen to anyone and give them all a chance. You never, ever talk down to someone. You know your not perfect and still have a long way to go, but you keep struggling. You work harder than most people I know, and you have more room in your heart than anyone I know." Ryuu smiled, but something inside her broke. "But I know you don't love me back."

Bell looked up for once and opened his mouth to respond. Before he could, though, Ryuu shook her head and kept on talking.

"You don't love me the way I want you to, Bell. And you need to say it. You need to be honest with your feelings and your friends. Trust me when I say," said Ryuu, "Nothing good ever comes from suppressing yourself."

And it was true. Ryuu had spoken up for the first time since her days with Astraea Familia, and she felt lighter. Her truth was out, and deep inside, a tiny kernel took root. Maybe she could leave Gale behind and become the Faerie Princess? The elf who was weighed down by her sins felt like she could fly. However, the irony of her thoughts soon caught up to her. Her contradictory statements and lifestyle crashed together, and everything overwhelmed her. But in the best way possible. It made her smile, even as tears streamed down her face. Then, she felt a giggle. It rose up through her stomach and out her throat. The giggles soon turned to chuckles and then to a bright sound from deep in her belly. Deep in the Dungeon, an elf laughed because she was free to be herself. She laughed like the wind, and it was loud, and it was bright. And it was beautiful.

Watching her laugh, Bell felt a premonition. An impossible scenario passed through his head, where an elf saved him from a minotaur that day in the Dungeon. But by a chance of fate, a flip of a coin, would he have fallen in love with Ryuu?

***

Out in the Dungeon, Lefiya didn't know what to say. She looked to her right, where Elwin walked beside her and struggled to find the words. She knew now that she had just experienced a panic attack, but how was she supposed to tell him why?

"You don't owe me an explanation, you know," said the half-elf, without looking at her. He continued, "I get it, really. Sometimes you just don't want to tell people things. Besides," he pointed to his hair, "It's not like I'm one to talk."

Lefiya squeezed her staff. "I just don't want you to think that I don't trust you," explained the little elf.

Elwin smiled, "I know you do. You'll never have anything to prove to me, Lefiya, ok?"

Lefiya stared at him while they walked. As the strongest member of their party, except for Lett, she walked at the back as the rearguard. Elwin had joined her, and they walked alone. Together.

"Her name was Filvis Challia," said Lefiya.

Elwin nodded but did not speak.

"When we first met, I thought she was an elf. She was very kind," explained Lefiya. She blushed before continuing, "And very pretty."

"Ah, so a rival for your affection?" asked Elwin with a smirk.

That joke did bring a smile to Lefiya's face, and she rolled her eyes.

"No, not anymore."

Elwin watched her grow silent again.

"You don't have to tell me what happened."

Lefiya mustered up her courage. "It turned out…she wasn't such a good person. She wasn't even a person, really. She was a creature with a magic stone embedded inside her, and she was trying to destroy Orario. I ended up having to kill her," explained the little sixteen-year-old elf.

Elwin stopped walking and took a moment to stare at the woman in front of him. When she noticed, Lefiya stopped too. She could just imagine what cruel thoughts were going through his head. How she was a disgusting murderer.

"You're one of the strongest people I know," said Elwin.

Lefiya was stunned for a moment before anger built within her. How could she be strong? She had killed Miss Filvis! She betrayed her dear friend, the woman she…no Lefiya Viridis was not strong. She was weak and a coward.

Elwin jogged to catch up to her and looked upon her face.

"You're crying."

Lefiya saw salty tiny tears fall to the sand and made to brush them away with the hem of her sleeve. It did not do much, though. Her whole outfit was already soaked through with sweat. All she did was mix her tears with the stains already there. The next moment, though, she felt a dry handkerchief get pressed into her hands.

"My mother always told me to keep one handy. Guess I know why now," explained Elwin. The half-elf kept talking, "Do you know the story of the Van Hellsings?"

Lefiya shook her head.

Elwin nodded, "They were a family of adventurers. There was the father, Abraham, and his wife, Mina. One day, while adventuring in the nation of Wallachia, they were attacked by a vamp bat."

Lefiya tilted her head.

"A vamp bat is a flying monster that drains blood from its victims. It also has a small chance of infecting them with a disease called Sanguinis," explained Elwin, "The original disease never did much, but once statuses became a thing, it evolved."

"Evolved?"

Elwin took a deep breath, "The disease Sanguinis had a chance to evolve to the skill: Sanguinis Vampiris. It was more of an infection, though. The adventurer would then slowly begin to change into a Nosferatu."

"A Nosferatu?"

What in the world was Elwin talking about? What did this have to do with Miss Filvis? That said, it was a pleasant distraction.

"A human with monster-like abilities. Suffice to say, all Nosferatus went mad and gained a craving for human flesh. In many ways, they would be like these creature hybrids of yours."

"What does this have to do with the Van Hellsings?"

Elwin frowned, "Mina Van Hellsing got infected and became a Nosferatu. She slowly began to take over Wallachia, and Abraham was the only one able to put her down. He had to kill her to save his country and familia."

"So what? You think that I'm like this Van Hellsing fellow?"

Elwin shrugged, "Maybe. All I'm saying is that you were faced with an impossible decision and still did what you believed to be the best. You probably helped Filvis as well."

"I helped her?" asked Lefiya, who had never considered the possibility.

"In the legend of the Van Hellsings, Mina's last words were 'Thank You.' She no longer had to watch herself destroy the world that she loved or hurt the people she cared about. In those final moments, she became herself again. Maybe you gave the same gift to Filvis Challia?"

Lefiya had never considered that option before. That was a small comfort if that was what she had done, but a comfort, nonetheless.

"That said, you never told me why the word banshee had triggered such an attack," asked Elwin.

"Banshee was what people called Miss Filvis," explained Lefiya. It would be a long time till she would allow herself to love again, but looking at him now, maybe this jade green boy could help.

Unfortunately, their moment meant that they did not notice the eyes watching over them.

***

Back with the elf and the human, Bell had to wait for Ryuu to stop laughing. He didn't mind waiting, though. Ryuu was lovely when she was having fun. So, he waited till she had calmed down, which came much too quickly in his opinion and then tried to resume their earlier conversation.

"Ryuu," Bell said something for the first time, "I don't love you. At least, not like that. I love you as a trusted partner and a close friend, but no more than that. I'm sorry."

Ryuu would be lying if she said it didn't hurt. However, that could wait for later.

"Bell, I need to apologize too. I was hiding my own feelings earlier. The truth is, I don't know how I feel about your lineage. Your aunt did many horrible things, and while I don't hold it against you, it is still hard not to think about it. Because of her, I lost a dear friend, among others. It will be a long time before I can be normal. Still, though, you trusted me with your secret, and I betrayed that trust." Ryuu lowered her head and almost considered the dogeza (which Mikoto had taught her). "I'm sorry."

Bell let out a breath, "I know it's complicated. And I know you didn't mean to. There's still a lot that I'm trying to figure out about this. Especially now that everyone knows my secret."

"Sorry about that," replied Ryuu, blushing.

"It's alright. The only problem is, I don't know what I'm going to do next, especially now that Hermes is gone. I have so many questions, and it seems like he's the only one with answers."

Ryuu perked up, "Then, maybe I can answer some of your questions. I did meet her after all. At the very least, I can tell you what she looked like."

Bell smiled genuinely for the first that day, "I guess so. Well, what was she like in battle?"

Ryuu pondered the question as her sky-blue eyes got lost in thought. She nodded a bit, finally settling on an idea.

Before she could speak, though, the desert erupted around them. Out came great beasts, five meders wide and twenty meders tall. Four desert worms surrounded them, their mouths filled with razor-like teeth. The monsters screeched their opposition, but Hestia Familia would not be deterred. The boy and the girl shared a glance, a smirk, and jumped into battle.

With that, the Hestia Familia executives had returned.

Chapter Text

Fighting was better now for Ryuu and Bell. The problem was this was a new dynamic. Their entire relationship was shifting, and that reflected in the way both of them fought. While not even close to the travesty of their fight against the anubites, it was not their best. There were a couple of missed calls and some failed combination attacks. But these were only growing pains. Eventually, these two adventurers would become the ultimate tag team.

The desert worms were fierce opponents. They dug and tunnelled their way through the ground. Whenever Bell or Ryuu thought that they would finish the creatures off, the monsters dug underground. They vanished like an ocean; the desert rippled in their wake. Then, they would pop back in an explosion and spray.

“Bell! On your left!” called Ryuu.

Bell rolled left. As he moved, he pulled up on his knee and brought his hand out.

“Firebolt!”

Shots of fire came out and blasted the desert worm. It shook its enormous head, dazed and confused. Ryuu took the opportunity to jump high into the air.

“Wind blade!”

An arc of green came down. It swept through the middle of the monster, and the two sides fell down split in the middle.

Ryuu came down, one hand already stretched out. Bell caught her by the wrist and threw her at the next monster. The elf had already switched her wooden blade for a short sword, and she pierced it in the bottom. She held it in place. Bell sprinted forward and jumped off Ryuu’s back. As gravity took him down, the Hestia Knife carved a bloody path across its body.

The two separated next, sprinting off in different directions. The second desert worm was still alive but now terribly injured. It burrowed back into the sand. Meanwhile, the other two worms dived down at the adventurers, their needle teeth almost spinning. Ryuu was nimble enough to get out of the way, but Bell was distracted. He was still a tad anxious about her, which mean that the monster’s teeth punctured his left arm.

Bell ripped it away and suddenly felt his arm go numb. The desert worm’s paralytic toxins hindered Bell’s mobility. He was left with his right arm, and he went to work stabbing and slashing. He used his momentum to hit down at the desert worm’s brain. The monster was still low to the ground from its divebomb. It flopped around as Bell twisted the knife.

“Firebolt!”

With his palm placed on the open wound, Bell’s magic exploded in the head of the monster. Chunks of flesh went everywhere. The beast stopped flopping then.

Meanwhile, Ryuu darted to and fro. The desert worm couldn’t keep up and was forced to bury itself. That left two monsters waiting for them. Ryuu took the opportunity to sprint for the camp. She grabbed a vial filled with a purple liquid. She tossed it to Bell, who caught it without looking. He drank quickly and felt his arm begin to return to normal. This was an anti-toxin whipped up by Urashima Taro. It was fast-acting and useful as a general anti-paralysis agent. This potion was the first original creation he had back in the Far East. The formula was tried and true.

When that was done, the two took up positions back-to-back. That was when Ryuu voiced her thoughts. The elf had spotted something peculiar in the middle of combat.

“Bell, I was able to spot one of the creature’s beady eyes. It glowed purple,” explained Ryuu.

Bell frowned, “Purple eyes? You don’t mean?”

“It’s like they had been charmed,” replied Ryuu. Indeed, a disturbing thought, if Freya had been able to get all the way down here. There was only one problem.

“If Freya managed to get down here…. the Dungeon would’ve reacted, like when Hestia went to Floor 18,” said Bell.

Ryuu nodded, “What I was thinking. Freya didn’t come down, but those monsters are still being controlled. And there are no monsters with the ability to charm in this section of the Dungeon.”

Bell felt his eyebrows quirk up, “Wait a minute, you think that this has something to do with the Sun Seekers?”

Ryuu nodded. “Which means that they know we’re here.”

It took a second, but a look of horror washed over Bell’s face. Ryuu nodded again.

“The others could be in danger!”

***

“Shit!”

Aisha swung her padao with extreme force. She crushed the carapaces of all the desert scorpions that surrounded her before turning to help her allies. Mikoto stood in front of Haruhime, her katana tracing lines of silver through the air. Daphne stood on Lyd’s left and was handling the brunt of the monsters along with the lizardman.

The party had been ambushed only a little while after crossing the river. They made their way over in boats woven from Dungeon Bullrushes and had launched an investigation into the desert. When she asked what they had been looking for, Lyd told Aisha that they were searching for tamer collars. Apparently, the Sun Seekers had found a way to control Dungeon monsters much as Tamers did. The thought had sent a tingle up Aisha’s spine.

Now, she witnessed the process first-hand. Only a couple of monsters had been controlled, but they caused a racket as they attacked. This noise brought more monsters upon them. This was a pass parade. Upon that realization, Aisha felt a pit of dread in her stomach. This was dangerously familiar to what had once happened before.

“More coming!” shouted Daphne.

Aisha took a spot in front of the other Xenos. Aside from Lyd, she was the strongest member of this specific team. She had put herself in the rearguard and followed the lead of everyone else. In the back of her mind, she had also wanted to watch over everyone in case these Xenos creatures stabbed them in the back. She was paranoid, yes, but a lifetime of betrayal and ingrained it into her being. Thanks for that one, Ishtar.

Now, though, she was able to spot all the things that slipped through the cracks. When a couple of wadjets threatened to spit acid at a couple of Xenos, Aisha was there to cut them down. The moment a griffin made its attack, she cut off its wings and crushed its head. The attacks came like that for a while. After all, there was nowhere to hide in this desert. The only thing they could do was weather the attacks in front of them. All the while, they continued to cut a bloody path into the heart of the desert. They had to keep moving forward.

“Everyone, get down!” shouted Lyd.

Aisha did as she was ordered because the next couple of moments involved the lizard man breathing fire at their opponents. Unfortunately, this was the Great Desert, and many monsters had some resistance to heat. What Lyd’s attack really did was buy some time. The sudden impact of the flames, and how they would obscure a monster’s senses, gave the adventurers and the Xenos a moment to recuperate.

Aisha ran below the flames and laid into the monsters surrounding her. She took the lead, knowing that she was the best fighter besides Lyd. Her padao stained red with monster blood and gore littered the sand. There weren’t many drop items, but Aisha wasn’t concerned about the valis. She wanted to protect the others and redeem herself for what she had done back in the swamp. So, she turned herself into a storm of destruction.

Soon enough, the “pass parade'' had subsided. That meant that a moment of pause came over the group. Aisha was not one to wait around, though.

“We need to keep moving,” said the Amazon. Some of the Xenos grumbled that a human was giving orders, Lyd nodded along.

“There’s a rocky outcrop that can give us some basic safety and protection,” replied the lizardman. He waved his hand, and the rest of the group followed. Aisha remained at the rearguard, looking to make up for her failures.

Mikoto had Haruhime climb onto her back. The renard was the slowest of the group, and no one was willing to take the risk that more monsters would find them. Even if Haruhime was embarrassed, and Mikoto was too, the Black Crow was not going to put her…dear friend’s life in danger. Hestia Familia’s top scout took her renard into the middle of the party and cast out her black crow skill to search for more monsters. Thankfully, there were only isolated monsters and no more groups. That did not mean they were in the clear. Just that a break had come.

***

For Wiene’s group, there was no problem. The large groups of monsters that swarmed them didn’t stand a chance. Not only was the Sword Princess there, but there were two dancing dragons as well. Otohime was in her element, with the wide-open spaces of the desert allowing her to make full use of her bisento’s long reach.

Her staff was a long blur as it swept through the monsters in front of her. She duelled a group of five anubites, all on her own. Their landforms fell apart, and their brute strength did nothing to beat her finesse.

Around Otohime, Wiene covered the flanks. She had no weapons, but her claws cut through monsters like paper. The vouivre’s newfound strength astonished Lili, who had no idea that their friend had grown so strong. Urashima and Chigusa stood near the rear, launching arrows to take out any strays. Overall, the monsters didn’t stand a chance.

When the dust settled, all that was left was a collection of magic stones for them to store for later. Lili made sure to take every magic stone she could and stuffed it into her pack. After that, the group gathered to discuss what just happened.

“Something was…off, about those monsters,” said Urashima.

Otohime nodded, “The first ones to get here, they acted like they were taking orders.”

Chigusa shivered. “Are we sure about that? Can monsters be controlled?” she asked.

Lili nodded, “Master Bell once told a story about a charmed silverback.”

Ais tilted her head, “Charmed? Like with Freya?”

At the mention of the Goddess’s name, many of the Xenos shivered. Their fear was still fresh in their minds. There was also anger directed at the Sword Princess. Ais bore the brunt of it, even if she was a little annoyed. She didn’t like being compared to Freya. Before anyone could voice their thoughts, Wiene spoke up.

“What do we do next?” said the vouivre to Lili. The prum rubbed her chin, deep in thought.

Lili looked back into the desert and nodded.

“Lili believes that we should continue. Whatever hides in the desert ruins is worth investigating. Lili knew from the beginning that the ruins were probably the best spot to check,” explained the Dauntless.

Otohime tilted her head, “What makes you say that?”

“If these Xenos really are trying to be like humans,” explained Lili, “Then the first thing they’d want is a castle. They wouldn’t want to be stuck in any desert cave; they’d be too proud for that.”

“That seems like a risky assumption,” replied Urashima. A frown settled on his face.

Lili shrugged, “It’s like Mister Lyd said, they’re proud and unwilling to hide.”

Ais nodded along. It made sense to her, but if Lili thought that the Sun Seekers were there…

“Shouldn’t we get Bell and Ryuu?”

At the Sword Princess’s question, Wiene nodded.

“Bell is super strong! He’s the strongest person here!”

Ais frowned, “Second.”

“What?”

“Bell is the second strongest adventurer in the party,” replied Ais.

Otohime stifled a laugh.

Wiene frowned, “Who’s stronger than Bell?”

Ais frowned, “I am.”

“No, you’re not,” replied Wiene.

“Yes, I am,” countered Ais.

They went back and forth for a little while. Finally, Wiene had had enough.

“If you’re so strong, why didn’t you try and fight Freya?”

That question stunned Ais into silence. She had no response and frowned. After moments of quiet contemplation, something in her face settled.

“Not before, but now I’m strong enough to save all of you,” replied the Sword Princess.

Something in her face spoke to the little dragon girl. Wiene’s gained a sparkle, the flames of hope returning. This girl was a little bit like Bell, and that made the magic stone that was Wiene’s heart start to feel fuzzy.

The other Xenos looked on warily, but Wiene nodded. The matter was settled with her; she would put her faith in Ais Wallenstein. The vouivre turned back to Lili and gestured from the prum to continue.

The Dauntless frowned, “Lili doesn’t like the fact that Miss Wiene believes she’s in charge, but Lili will overlook that. For now, what really matters is that we move forward as fast as possible. If we waste time looking for Master Bell and Miss Ryuu, then these Sun Seekers might find time to relocate. Lili believes that the less time wasted, the better,” the prum smiled, “Even if Miss Wallenstein might not be the strongest member of this party, she is capable.”

Ais pouted and resisted the urge to stomp her foot. She was strong! And she’d prove it too!

***

The third group was under the most pressure. The monster attacks were relentless and incredibly organized. It also didn’t help that their most powerful member was a mostly back-line mage. Lefiya was good, but she could only get so many spells off in time. Elwin was a one-man vanguard in front of her. He has used a combination of his Gemini and Taurus spells, so there were currently two Elwin’s running around beating the shit out of everything.

In the front, Welf, Ouka, and Lett held the line. The goblin had grown stronger by order of magnitude the past year, and it showed. His battle-axe hewed through monsters. Besides him, Ouka was not to be outdone. The large ox-like man was a shield wall. Nothing broke through his defence, and all around him, monsters fell.

Welf was different. With a bit of foresight, the smith had made a new magic sword for the journey. It was jagged and misty. Welf called it ‘Frozen Treat’ despite the protests of his Familia. The mind-powered blade was quite effective against the desert dwellers. Their lack of cold resistance meant that they died in a flash-freeze with every sword stroke. And now that Welf had Spirit Healing, the smith just needed to take intermittent breaks before he could redouble his attacks.

Despite all that, there were cracks in the defence. Monsters slipped through to attack the Xenos. Cassandra cast healing magic where she could, but she was told not to exhaust herself. The dreamer had to watch on as her allies took cuts and bruises all over their body. She felt despair creep into her body.

“Wynn Fimbulvetr!”

The Thousand Elf took a page from Ignis’s book and began using Riveria’s powerful ice magic. Her overwhelming might was on full display as an entire crowd of monsters went down.

Watching over her, a banshee smiled gleefully. Oh yes, this little elf was powerful, only fitting for the object of Nysa’s obsession. And the rest of this party was starting to get so tired. It would only be a matter of minutes before she could do as she pleased.

Now that Nysa’s moment of triumph was at hand, she was happy to wait. Patience was easy when she knew that no one here was more powerful than her. The only exception was the ugly little goblin and her wonderful elf. The only thing that brought a frown to her face was that damned greened hair thing hovering around her. It seemed to have eyes in the back of its head. As it moved to one side of the little elf, its twin was the other end.

When the green one had split itself in two, a memory tickled Nysa’s brain. She felt like that had been something she had once been able to do, in another life, one where her pride was crushed and her spirit broken. Seeing that just made her angrier. First, this disgusting creature was stealing her beloved? And now it was copying Nysa’s own moves! That would not do! Her vision began to turn red. She had thought she had patience, but there was only one thing that mattered anymore.

The banshee struck like lightning. The ground exploded, and everyone’s vision was obscured by the sand that sailed into the air. Elwin felt his clone get obliterated, an echo of pain following. Now, though, it was impossible to see. Whatever had attacked them had made it so that their vision would be obscured.

“Hii!”

Welf’s blade blasted away anything that lingered in the air. When it was gone, Elwin shuddered at the sight before him. Ouka was on his back, his shield split in two. Lett held onto a wound in his gut. The rest of the Xenos were in similar states of disarray. That wasn’t the worst part, though.

“Where’s Lefiya?” asked the half-elf.

She was nowhere to be found. It all felt so wrong. She was supposed to be here, complaining about sand in her outfit. Then Elwin would tease her. But there was nothing. There was no blood or gore. There weren’t even any dropped weapons or supplies. It was like Lefiya had not been there at all.

No no no

“No, no, no.”

Elwin chanted these words like a mantra. He fell to his knees, and he began to dig with his hands. She had to be here somewhere!

***

Up on the surface, Riveria was not doing her job. She was supposed to be helping the younger mages with their training. The problem was, she couldn’t meditate. The state of mind that usually came to her so quickly would not come. Her thoughts wandered like the wind. They kept returning to one idea, what if they were in trouble?

Ais and Lefiya were strong adventurers, and Elwin seemed to know how to handle himself, but this was the Dungeon. There was no such thing as being prepared. One could only try their hardest not to die. Riveria tried to rationalize her behaviour. She was most likely only being paranoid. Yes! That was it! The high elf decided that she would calm her nerves with some tea.

She gave some instructions to Alicia, who would teach the rest of the mages, and left to find a pot of boiling water. Some soothing tea was probably the best thing to settle her mind. She took the movements slowly to make sure she didn’t break anything.

The Nine Hells returned to the courtyard where everyone was training and began to pour them all some cups. When she was finished, she sat down to enjoy herself. The others would wait until they had finished today’s lesson.

Riveria took a sip, the tea already calming her fraught nerves. She set the cup down gently. Then, there was a slight sound. The high elf looked down to find that there was a crack in her cup. Why hadn’t she seen that before?

“Alicia!” called the high elf.

The Familia’s big sister figure jogged forward and bowed. Riveria rolled her eyes before pointing at the cup.

“When did this break?”

The elf mage took the cup from Riveria’s hands and studied it. After turning it over in her palms, she frowned.

“This was part of a new set Lady Riveria. The chefs bought it brand new yesterday; there should have been no cracks,” explained Alicia.

Riveria’s ears twitched. Something in her spine shifted. She could feel her fingers and her toes start to curl. Finally, a horrible feeling settled into her heart.

***

Ryuu and Bell were still waiting at the campsite. They had suffered no more monster attacks, but that just made the elf feel even worse. She walked up to where Bell was standing guard and stood next to him. The two of them watched over the desert in companionable silence.

“Bell,” began Ryuu, “I don’t like just standing here. If those monsters really were being controlled, then that means that the others could be in danger.”

Bell frowned, “I know, but what are we supposed to do about it? If we leave, we put the supplies in danger. We can’t afford to lose the water.”

Ryuu scowled. She hated that he was right, and she hated that her comrades were out there waiting for her. When Bell put a hand on her shoulder, she hated that her stupid heart still skipped a beat.

Bell smiled at her, “I think we have to have faith in them. They’re OUR allies, after all. They’re stronger than we know.”

Ryuu started to nod, but she stopped. Something was making her twitch. Bell’s hand squeezed tighter. The two of them kept their bodies lightly relaxed. When the hammer came down, they were ready.

***

The temple had only been lightly guarded when Lili and the rest of their party showed up. All that was waiting for them was a collection of scorpion men and a big pile of moss. The large green mass was full of vegetation, a few bits of wood, and a small magic stone at the centre. The only other thing in the ruins was what seemed to be a map. Lili studied what was in front of her.

While she did so, Ais, Wiene, and Otohime secured the rest of the structure. True to the legends, there was a small collection of precious metals and gems waiting for them. They scooped these up to give to Chigusa. As they were leaving the apparent treasure room, Otohime spotted a long jagged black rock. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. Next to it was a desert lotus blossom. An incredibly rare flower, it had no practical use (that people knew of) but was quite pleasing to the eye. It sold in the upwards of millions of valis. So, she collected that too.

When they returned to the main room, Lili was still studying the map. The prum also spent time glancing at the heaping pile of moss in front of her. Her memory was screaming at her now, and she did not like the implications.

“Wiene!” shouted Lili.

The vouivre came dashing over, attentive for what the Dauntless had to say. Wiene still remembered how smart Lili was. She was the most clever person here.

“That swamp monster, when did it first appear?” asked Lili.

Wiene took a minute to consider the question. It was hard to keep track of time in the Dungeon; everything moved so differently down here. What felt like days was actually weeks, and what could be months was actually just hours. There was one event that stuck out, though.

“It was pretty soon after we rescued all of you from the Deep Floors. Maybe a little bit after that big attack on the Not-Dungeon next to the Dungeon,” replied Wiene.

Lili did the math in her head. The dates did match up with what she remembered. But if that was the case, and this was the plan of that creature…

“Miss Sword Princess!”

Ais came over, face severe but impassive.

“If needed, could you find your way back to the main camp?”

Ais nodded. The route was simple enough.

“Lili wants you to go on ahead. Master Bell and Miss Ryuu might be in danger.”

At those words, Ais almost vanished. However, her conscience kept her in place. She battled with herself and her promises. She had promised to keep these people safe. What if something happened while she was chasing down Bell? How was she supposed to protect everyone? She had no answers and was stuck looking between the entranceway back into the desert and back to where Lili was watching her. Finally, she turned to Wiene. The Sword Princess bent down till she was eye-level with the little vouivre.

“Wiene, if I leave, will you be able to protect everyone while I’m gone?”

Ais’s face was as serious as it had ever been. The little dragon girl nodded.

“Go save Bell!”

With those three simple words, Ais vanished into thin air. Ariel was active, and she cut through the desert. After she had left, Lili turned to the other Dragon Princess in their party. Otohime frowned at Lili’s glance but sighed. She gave a defeated nod.

“I’ll be ready, just in case,” were her only words.

Lili faced the rest of the Xenos.

“Lili wants this place scoured from top to bottom! The Sun Seekers were here, which means that there might still be something worth finding!”

Then she turned to the pile of moss. She thrust a gloved hand out, wriggled around in the heap of plant life, and pulled a tiny magic stone. She inspected it between her fingers before she threw it at the ground. Her boot followed soon after, turning it and the green mass into dust.

The Dauntless had been tricked.

And now she was pissed.

***

Scipio barely registered the destruction of his copy. His focus was on the battle in front of him. His hope had been to destroy whoever had been left guarding the supplies with the sand worms. Unfortunately, the two adventurers were some of the strongest of the bunch. The only one he feared more was that girl with the long blonde hair.

Even still, these two were quite the dangerous pair. They were too fast for his vines, and the boy had fire magic. The elf had her own wind magic that could cut through the thinner parts of his body, but the boy was the real danger. Scipio began to remember him and the pain that he inflicted upon him before.

The Marsh Warden was not the strongest Sun Seeker to ever live. Compared to the others, he was weak. He lacked potential in that aspect. None of that had mattered to Typhon, though. The King of the Xenos had only ever looked on and expected. He expected things of Scipio like no one else ever had. The other Xenos, the human lovers, could live on their dull lives for as long as possible. They could continue to dream without putting in the proper work, never living up to their ambitions. Scipio, however, was going to put in the work. He would live up to the expectations placed upon him.

The monster roared, and many more answered his call. This was his backup plan, deep in the Desert Floors of The Dungeon. It had taken him a long time to track even one of these creatures down, but now he had five of them.

When they crested the dunes, Scipio delighted in the despair that washed over the boy’s face. The elf was harder to read, but Scipio could still imagine that she was shaking in her boots. Because in front of them were great creatures of stone.

Walking around on four legs, like a beast, but with the head of a woman, were the sphinxes. There were five of these magnificent creatures, each of them wrought from the stones of the Dungeon. They stood at three meders tall and were easily ten lengthwise. There was only ever one per floor at any given time, but Scipio had managed to wrangle them all, turning them into his servants. Scipio had no strength as a monster, but he had the smarts and willpower to compensate.

The two standing in front of him tossed themselves into battle, but their attacks did little. Cuts and slashes could not pierce the stone hide of these monsters. Blasts of fire would only leave scorch marks. And even blades of wind would only chip away at the rocky exterior.

However, the sphinxes themselves did not land any hits, but it was only a matter of time. Scipio knew the one great truth of the Dungeon. In a race against time, the Dungeon always won. Just to make sure that he was also protected, the Marsh Warden mounted his own great beast. Looking down at the battle also let him better exercise his will upon the monsters.

He could not reprogram them per se, but he could suggest tactics and attack patterns—anything to tire these two out even more. The end for them was near, and they were the last to know. Until that godforsaken bell began to chime.

While he danced around attacks, a pure white light gathered to the boy with snowy hair. The elf sped up, working around him. She soon erected a self-imposed circle, dancing as she went. Scipio did not fully understand the concept of beauty but watching her, he came close.

After only thirty seconds, the boy began to move. Around his white fist, he had tied a black cloth. Suddenly, Scipio remembered the light. It haunted his nightmares and spelled his doom. The boy would destroy the monsters in front of him. Thankfully, Scipio had a backup plan.

He didn’t see, so much as feel, the first impact. When the boy punched the head of the sphinx with his glowing white hand, wrapped in black, the concussive blast echoed throughout the Dungeon. Scipio had just lost one sphinx, seeing it turn into ash like all monsters did when they meet their end. The other three began to harass the boy, who was showing signs of exhaustion. Apparently, calling forth the white light cost him a great deal of stamina. Scipio tucked that information away for later while he worked on eliminating the obstacles in his way.

His attacks and suggestions had panned out, thankfully. Without realizing it, the two adventurers had been led away from their lovely campsite. Atop his personal sphinx, Scipio went on a rampage of his own. He destroyed the supplies and everything else he could find. Water containers exploded under his onslaught. While this happened, the second and third sphinxes were annihilated. That only left one monster to distract two adventurers. Thankfully for Scipio, the boy had nearly exhausted himself. The elf girl did what she could to keep him alive, damn her, but it mattered not. Now, it was only a matter of time before they starve or died from thirst.

With his mayhem complete, the swamp monster turned his gaze back to the adventurers. The boy with white hair had destroyed the last monster. All that was left was Scipio himself and the sphinx he rode. Still, though, the tactician of the Sun Seekers smiled. The boy had passed out from exhaustion. The heat and possible lack of sleep had also helped. And the elf was now hindered by supporting him. They were sitting ducks.

Scipio gave the order to his magnificent beast. It was time for the finishing blow. The sphinx raised a paw up and started to swing down.

***

Ryuu knew she was going to be crushed. The most likely scenario was that the first blow wasn’t going to kill her, but the second one could. The third one definitely would. She closed her eyes and prepared to throw Bell as far away as she could. It would only buy him a couple more seconds, but it would be worth it. Except, the attack never came. The only thing that hit Ryuu was rubble. She opened her eyes and was faced with the back of a hero.

Ais Wallenstein’s hair swayed with the wind. She held her Desperate lightly in one hand. The Tempest winds still raged around her like a protective shell. Those winds, combined with the Durandal aspect of her sword, had allowed her to blast through the stones of the sphinx. She brought her gaze up to Scipio and felt fury. This monster had almost killed her friends. It had nearly killed Bell.

Even to Ryuu’s trained eyes, it looked like the Sword Princess vanished. The elf blinked, and her saviour had obliterated the sphinx’s back legs. There was to be no escape. The giant moss monster seemed to have realized this because it jumped from the side of its steed.

Ais crushed the sphinx’s head and turned to Scipio. She readied herself to charge but paused. The great monster started to laugh, its voice like a rumbling volcano. Before Ais could move, a sand worm appeared from below and swallowed it whole.

***

When Lefiya finally came to, she did not recognize where she was. The only familiar thing was the face looking down at her. None of the creature’s facial features were similar to her old flame, but Lefiya knew who she was looking at.

“Miss Filvis?”

With that, the Banshee’s smile widened.

Chapter Text

Nysa tumbled out from the rock as a fledgling monster; she felt pain immediately. She was not like any other Xenos. Her heart, her magic stone, was chipped and cracked. There was something terribly wrong with her. None of the other Xenos listened to her when she complained (except for one). They all assumed that she was just complaining. It was only until she met Typhon that the pieces started to click together.

"You weren't just a monster," explained the upcoming leader of the Xenos.

At this point, Nysa had only been alive a month. Like Fear and Wiene, the others had been kind, but Nysa knew they didn't understand. Even among the Xenos, she was an oddity. Her traits, her line of thought, were more humane than most.

"I have made a friend," began Typhon, "Who told me of beings called 'creatures.' They were not monsters, but humans with magic stones at their core. They were hybrids."

"And I am one of those creatures?" asked Nysa.

The king shook his skeletal head, "No, but you were, once upon a time. That is why you think and feel so differently than the rest of us."

"And now?"

Nysa was scared. She didn't want to be alone anymore. If she wasn't like the other Xenos, would she be removed? Or kicked out? Would she be allowed to stay?

"You're a Xenos now, Nysa. You're allowed to do and be whatever you want," replied Typhon. "Is there something that you desire?"

The Banshee frowned. There was one thing…

"I dream of a smiling face…someone important…."

"Oh, and what do they look like?"

"They have long hair…and pointy ears, with blue eyes," explained Nysa.

Typhon made a sound of regret, "I see…so it's a surface-dwelling creature…."

Nysa frowned, "Is that wrong?"

To Nysa, it sounded like the tremendous skeletal Xenos sighed, "Not entirely, but it could be better. You have heard the stories, haven't you?"

Nysa shook her head.

"Those disgusting surface people do nothing but kill us. Their Familias attacked us only a couple months ago, and look at what happened! Many of the strongest among us are dead now."

Nysa had always known that Typhon had his disagreements with Lyd, but it sounded like there was something else at play to her. She had heard of his secret rendezvous with some of the other angry Xenos. The ones that had been close friends with Gros and were mad at the rampant slaughter caused by Freya Familia.

"You think my dream is involved?" replied Nysa.

Typon shook his head, "No, child, your dream is just a coincidence. But a word of caution, surface dwellers are nothing but trouble."

Nysa's frown deepened.

***

Two more months in, three in Nysa's life, and she had grown to like Typhon. He did not shirk his share of duties, and he stood up to Lyd when no one else would. The lizardman continued his rhetoric that humans (the collective term for all races topside) could still be trusted. That the best way to get to the surface was to work with the humans. Talk like that confused Nysa. It was apparent that the humans did not care. They hated the Xenos; it was as simple as that. As for this Bell Cranel, their supposed saviour, he was just like the rest. He ran away when things got tough and left the Xenos to fend for themselves. That was Nysa's viewpoint, at least. The ones who had been there, especially the little dragon girl, all said that it wasn't his fault. Nysa didn't believe them, though.

Still, Typhon told her to keep her opinions to herself. These 'old guard' Xenos were still stronger than them, after all. If they wanted to truly make a difference, they'd have to train.

"So, how strong do you feel?" asked Horra, the silverback.

Currently, Nysa was busy training with Typhon and some of his fellow Xenos. When she asked why, Typhon claimed that it was to help them, 'seek the sun.'

Their small band had gone as deep as they dared, hunting down as many powerful monsters as they could. There were Nysa, Typhon, Horra, Scipio, Nastro (a bipedal dragon Xenos) and Bragi (a large troll with red crisscrossing veins). All of whom were on their way to becoming some of the top monsters around.

"Why are we training so much?" asked Nysa.

There had never been a reason given for what's going on. Nysa was happy to follow Typhon wherever; she had very few desires of her own, but she was curious about why there was a sudden intense focus on monster killing.

"To get stronger," said Typhon. He ate another magic stone.

"But why?" pressed Nysa.

"Because a change is gonna come," replied Typhon, "And we're going to make sure that everyone understands, we are not going to be subservient."

The group continued their training. Nysa killed more monsters than she could count, and she gobbled up each and every magic stone she could find. Big and small, Nysa did not discriminate. She had a dream to chase, and she would do whatever it took. Like Typhon always told her, if they were to make actual change, they would need to put themselves into the muck. This was how the Sun Seekers would become truly powerful.

***

Six months into her new life, and something beautiful happened. Nysa was exploring the deep floors, searching for more magic stones to eat when she felt the ground tremble. One of those so-called expeditions was making its way through the Dungeon. Nysa had heard that they were nothing but trouble and that the best solution was to hide. Even if she was stronger now, she was also on floor forty-six. Any Familia that could make its way down here, with enough members to cause the ground to shake, was not to be trifled with. So, Nysa hopped into a crack in the wall and watched the party pass.

For the most part, the ignorant humans walked by in silence. They took the occasional break to kill stray monsters, but for the most part, they passed her by. No one even bothered looking in Nysa's direction. The Banshee was about to depart, bored of these proceedings, but then the most astonishing thing occurred. A little elf with a staff walked by, and the powerful Xenos almost fainted. This was her dream, walking in front of her.

Nysa kept to the shadows as she tailed Loki Familia. She followed them deep into the bowels of the Dungeon and kept her eyes focused on her desire. She watched the little elf (that was the species with the long ears, right?) bustle about her Familia's campsite. Nysa smiled when she saw how clumsy the elf was. Nysa did not know her name, but she felt something strange begin to stir in her chest. She did not have a heart, but she felt it beat in her body.

Later, after she had finished watching, Nysa returned to where her friends were waiting. They must have noticed the look on her face because they all started to ask questions.

"Why are you so happy?" asked Nastro.

"Do I look happy?" replied Nysa.

"You are smiling much more than usual," said Scipio. The moss monster lumbered around and regarded Nysa with curiosity. "Strange, usually you display no emotions at all. What a fascinating turn of events…."

"So…what happened?" asked Horra.

"I found her," replied Nysa. Her lips felt stretched.

The others nodded along. They had all shared their dreams and memories with each other. Scipio had nightmares about rabbits. Horra chased a little girl with a big face. Nastro only ever saw a bright flash of white, and Bastri was chased through dark halls. None of them understood what the dreams meant, though. The only one who knew what their dreams had to say was Typhon, and he refused to share his knowledge.

"What happens next?" asked the leader of the Sun Seekers.

The Banshee tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"What happens next? Do you want to pursue this girl? Would you like to learn more?"

The Xenos could not blush, but she felt her eyes drop to the floor.

"I do, but I can't, right? Because we have to stay down here? And she's up there?"

"Maybe," said Typhon, "but maybe we get to be different." He laid a bony hand on her shoulder. "What if we did something about it?"

"Like what?" asked Nastro. He wasn't a thinker, but his fighting capability was among the highest.

"Real action for real change. A revolution that tells those disgusting humans that we will not be cowed." Typhon looked at Nysa, "A chance to follow our dreams and our hearts desires, wherever they may lead us."

Everyone listened in rapt silence. Their eyes followed their leader, not because he was a great speaker, but because they were tired of being afraid. The stories they heard made them watch the shadows for first-class adventurers. Every sound made them jump because disaster waited around the corner. Something needed to change.

"I hate to bring it up," said Horra, "But how are we going to start a revolution? We're a lot weaker than most of the other adventurers, especially those first-class ones."

Typhon sighed, "I have an idea, but it will make a lot of people angry."

"What?" asked Bastri.

"I have made contact with some…potential allies," said Typhon. He seemed nervous.

Everyone was silent for a moment. All of them were terribly confused because who would be an ally of a bunch of monsters?

"I was introduced to a large Boaz by the name of Ottar," said Typhon. A collective shiver went up everyone's spines. Ottar only meant one thing. Before chaos broke out, Typhon raised his hands in a placating gesture.

"Lady Freya is ready and willing to apologize. She wants to extend an olive branch and help us move forward."

"How can we trust her?" asked Scipio.

"She is willing to meet with us in that old fake Dungeon."

Nastro's fist tightened, but Nysa couldn't blame him. Something was wrong with Knossos. Just talking about it made her head hurt. Her anger, sadness, and overall feeling of being lost felt tied to that place. She never wanted to take a single step in there.

"Her and her Familia?" asked Scipio.

Typhon shook his skeletal head.

"She says that it will just be her, and no guards and no familia members. And it will just be us. No Lyd or human lovers. We will meet with Freya, she will offer her help, and we will begin our quest for change."

***

Nysa had brought her desire down to the thirty-second floor. She had travelled at full speed and used every shortcut at her disposal. Her plan was to get to the relative safety of the thirty-fourth floor, but she also had to wait for Scipio. They were partners in this endeavour, after all. While she was waiting, the little elf woke up.

"Miss Filvis?" said the elf. Her eyes blinked, trying to regain focus. For a moment, she saw her old sweetheart in front of her. Then, everything came together, and she was looking at a war shadow-like creature.

Lefiya sat up and shuffled away. She knew what this creature must be. It was the Banshee that she had been warned about. Which meant that she had been kidnapped and separated from the others. She could imagine what Ais and Elwin would do when they learned. Then she looked at the Banshee and saw that it was frowning.

"What do you want with me?" asked Lefiya.

The Banshee continued to frown, "So you don't know who I am?"

Lefiya's face scrunched up. "Why would I know who you are?"

"You're in my dreams," replied the Xenos, as calmly as could be.

Lefiya felt disturbed at that moment. Nothing was making sense, and everything felt terribly off. She had to figure out what happens next.

"Well, what do you dream about?"

"Twinkling lights, your face, and I feel like there's a promise," said the Banshee.

"Ok…and do you have a name?" asked Lefiya. Keep it talking, bring down its defences and stay in the same spot. Do everything it took to give her friends the time to find her.

The monster smiled, "I do! My friends call me Nysa! So, you can call me Nysa!" She reached forward and took Lefiya's hands, "Please call me Nysa!"

Lefiya blinked, "Ok…so Nysa, why did you kidnap me?"

Nysa frowned, "Because I wanted to meet you!"

"Because I'm in your dreams…."        

Nysa nodded; a large smile bloomed onto her monster face.

"But you don't know why I'm there? You don't remember anything else about me? Like…my name?"

A look of horror and surprise washed over Nysa's face. Obviously, she had not even thought about considering what Lefiya's name was. She leaned forward, monster eyes wide.

"I'm guessing you want to know my name now?" asked Lefiya.

Nysa nodded.

"My name is Lefiya."

"Le-fi-ya," said Nysa, sounding out every syllable like she was tasting the word.

Nysa smiled, "It's a pretty name! Can I call you Lefiya?"

The little elf nodded. She was unsure of where this conversation was going but kept talking anyway. Unfortunately, Nysa didn't have any more questions. Instead, she spent her time just staring at Lefiya, studying her. Lefiya would try and ask questions but was more often than not met with silence. Nysa said that they were supposed to wait for her friend to show up. Lefiya thought that this meant the other monster, the swamp warden.

Eventually, he did show up. In fact, he was riding inside of a desert worm. The monster glowed purple, like the others Lefiya fought, and drilled up out of the ground. It loomed over the two. Lefiya started scooting away again, but Nysa watched unpassionately. The desert worm opened its mouth like it was about to eat them, but instead, it made a terrible retching sound. It spat out a large green lump.  The lump landed with a wet thunk and made an awful sound moving its body. Then it shook drops of water away.

It regarded Lefiya, its gaze hidden by hanging lichen. Still, though, Lefiya felt her body tremble. This beast was much more intelligent than she was. She felt like when Finn or Lili were studying her, looking for opportunities.

"This is the one?" asked the swamp monster.

Nysa nodded, cautious. She opened her mouth, "We can use her, right, for the plan? She works? Please tell me she works, Scipio." A dark aura overtook Nysa, "If she doesn't, I don't care."

The swamp monster nodded, still not facing the Banshee. It checked behind itself as if searching for its enemies. Then it turned back to Lefiya.

"She'll do perfectly. From what my underlings observed, she is the strongest magic user, and she is beloved by certain group members." A twinge of jealousy spiked Nysa's heart. "She'll be the perfect one to lead them on. I'll start leaving the signs; you knock her out for the journey."

Nysa pouted, "I don't want to knock her out!"

"You have a problem hurting this one?"

The Banshee frowned, "Of course not." The smile returned, even more significant than before, "I want to keep looking at those pretty eyes of hers."

Oh yes, something was disgustingly off now. Even worse, the monster's mannerisms were that of Filvis's (and partially Ein's). The constant reminders of her last love kept Lefiya's mind spiralling. Any thoughts of rebellion were replaced with traumatic memories. She wanted to plan her escape, but something else made her stay. She knew Nysa. But she didn't like the way the Xenos was studying her. That sinking feeling in her gut just kept getting worse.

***

"Take it, easy, man!"

Welf grabbed Elwin, trying to hold him in place. The half-elf had stood up and tried to run off into the Desert, looking for any signs of the lost Lefiya. Welf had grabbed him, trying to reason with him.

"I have to protect her!"

The rest of their party was taken aback. Elwin had been unbelievably laid back the entirety of their trip. Even when they were under attack. Now, though, his calm was shattered. He moved like a madman, fighting to escape Welf's hold. Thankfully, his movement had no control; he was just thrashing about like a wild animal. The only one here who understood what was really going on was Welf. The smith had seen his hometown and understood what this incident meant. Protection, keeping people safe, this is what Elwin believed in. His father had abandoned him. He wasn't going to be his father.

"Welf! Let me go! I have to find her!"

"We'll find her, man! But you need to calm down right now!"

"Fuck off!"

Welf changed his grip to a more substantial headlock. He leaned in close to speak with the half-elf.

"Wherever they took her, she won't be in danger. You're not abandoning her. You're taking the time to give her a proper rescue. Now breathe! We have to find the others!"

Elwin started to still, but he did not look happy about it.

Lett nodded, "Welf's right. The mission is off! Everyone, get back to the campsite!"

They started to make their way back at a brisk jog. While they were moving, they met up with Lyd's party. They had just recrossed the river.

"Sir Welf! Sir Elwin! Are you two alright?" asked Mikoto. She was still carrying Haruhime on her back. She was also fully aware of how the Renard's chest seemed to be squished into her. She chose not to dwell on those feelings, though.

"We're fine," said Welf for the both of them. Elwin was still not in a state to be having a discussion.

Haruhime peeked over Mikoto's shoulder.

"Where is Lady Lefiya?"

"A monster got her," answered Ouka. The big man nodded to his two childhood friends.

"Cassandra! Are you ok?" asked Daphne. She spent a fair amount of time searching her partner over.

"I'm fine, Daphne!" replied a flustered Cassandra.

Lyd soon got the combined group moving again. They moved through the Desert at a breakneck speed, faster than most monsters could track. As soon as a member started to fall behind, they were carried. Joining Haruhime was Cassandra, who rode on Daphne's back.

When they got back to their campsite, they discovered that Wiene's group had already beat them to it. They also found that many of their supplies had been wrecked. There was debris everywhere but no blood, thankfully. The carnage mainly had been aimed at their food and water supplies. Welf's portable smithing kit, Urashima's mixing supplies, and their acquired drop items (including the phoenix feather) were still in top condition.

"Salvage everything, you can!" screamed Lili, "Take all the remaining usable canteens and refill them at the oasis! Mister Urashima, Lili wants you to start seeing if we can make new receptacles! Lady Otohime, Lady Wiene, take some of the Xenos and see if there's any food to be gathered! Lili wants at least something for when Master Bell wakes up!"

When the prum saw that the others returned, she smiled for a moment, glad that her family was ok. Then she noticed that Lefiya was missing. Her knuckles turned white, and her eyes gained a distinctive sharpness to them. In his mind, Welf smiled because these Sun Seekers had just made a terrible mistake.

"Little bit! Where's Bell?" asked Welf.

Lili set the others to work before leading the smith to an unconscious Bell. His head rested in Ais's lap while Ryuu performed healing magic.

"Is there anything wrong with him?" asked Welf.

Ryuu shook her head, "Just mind-down and some scraped knuckles. He'll be ok." The elf smirked, "Besides, he has the Sword Princess watching over him after all."

Welf was happy to see that Ryuu was relaxed again. At her little comment, Ais nodded once. Her hands were busy running their way through Bell's hair, a relaxed look on her face. Before Welf could dwell on the moment, though, the Dauntless dragged him away.

"Master Welf needs to get to work! There is equipment and weapons to maintain! Not to mention, he needs to help Mister Urashima try and create new ways for the party to carry their food and water! We are in the Dungeon's Desert! Get it together! Lili wants to be out of here by the end of the day!"

"Oh? And what comes next little bit?"

Lili growled, "We go hunting."

***

Nysa had scooped Lefiya up and was now carrying her bridal style. If it wasn't for the fact that Lefiya was trying to figure out who she was being carried by then, she'd probably be red from embarrassment. As it stood, though, she was trying to put the puzzle pieces together. This creature acted like Miss Filvis, had dreamt of Lefiya, and was a reborn monster. This felt like it should be something else. From what Lefiya understood, Xenos dreamt of the times they were monsters. If Nysa was dreaming of her, that meant Lefiya had met this particular beast in a past life. And had left enough of an impression to warrant being remembered…

Slowly, things started to click. The idea was ridiculous enough to make Lefiya believe she was crazy. But technically speaking, Miss Filvis had been a monster (sort of) before she died. Were hybrids close enough to reality to count? The kind of implications that brought up were disturbing, to say the least. She had no idea how to confirm her theory, and she was afraid to do so. Because that meant that Nysa was Filvis but not really. And if this was sort of Filvis, what would that mean for Elwin?

At the thought of the jade-green elf, Lefiya almost had another panic attack. She knew him and how much he valued loyalty. If she had been suddenly snatched away, he was probably losing his mind with worry. He was going to freak out and try to do something stupid, like a one-man rescue attempt, the idiot—a handsome, well-meaning idiot but an idiot all the same.

Eventually, after an undetermined time of running across dunes, they left the Desert behind. Instead, they were in a sizeable clearing-like area filled with trees and a river. This was floor thirty-four. Just how long had the three of them been travelling?

Before she could think about that question, she had been lowered to the floor. Nysa smiled at her, her eyes just a little TOO focused on Lefiya. Beside them, Scipio lifted a plant-like appendage. In it was a stone weapon from the Dungeon. The implication was clear, try anything and die. No matter what Nysa wanted, Scipio was the one in charge. He was the one Lefiya was actually afraid of.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" asked Nysa. She turned to Scipio, a desperate look in her eye.

"No. But from the stories that Lady Freya told us, there is a possibility," replied Scipio.

"Possibility for what?" asked Lefiya.

"To make you like me!" said Nysa. Her wonder was childlike, and that just made Lefiya's horror worse.

The Banshee reached down to a small pouch hanging at her side. From it, she withdrew a monster stone.

"Apparently, there were once humans that got turned into monsters by having magic stones implanted in them," explained Nysa. "If I did it to you, and it worked, then you can stay down here with me!"

No matter if this had been Filvis, once upon a time, Lefiya was now face to face with a different person entirely. It was like if a five-year-old was given the status of Ottar.

"But if it didn't work?" asked Lefiya.

Nysa turned to Scipio. She had obviously not considered that possibility.

The swamp warden shrugged, "The most likely possibility? Death."

Nysa frowned, "Well, that wouldn't be good." She seemed to get lost in thought for a second before nodding, "I will wait then." Her smile returned. "For now, me and you can talk! There's so much I want to know!"

***

The expedition party had done all that they could to recover. Next up was trying to figure out what they did from here. It was obvious what direction the monsters had gone, down to the deeper floors. Obviously, they were going to try and follow them. The only problem was, there were still three floors of Desert to traverse. Each one was a hostile environment with few resources. They would have to travel next to the river and scavenge for food when they could while also finding enough to get them through the pure Desert of floor thirty-three.

By this point, Bell had woken up. He was embarrassed that he had fainted and was even more ashamed that everyone had watched him get a lap pillow. When he awoke, he expected to find a raging Lefiya, then he learned what had happened to her. He checked on Elwin first, who assured him that he was ok (for now). After that, he sat with Lili and explained what had happened with the sphinxes and the moss monster. Everyone else had similar experiences.

Lili rubbed her chin deep in thought. The purple glow of the monsters, and the way they behaved, all pointed in one direction.

"Mister Lyd, is there a chance that the Sun Seekers have found a way to control monsters?"

The lizardman rubbed his chin in deep thought. "It's possible, Lilliluchi. Typhon never comes to talk with the rest of us; he's always busy with something else. It's possible that he found a way. You all do have monster tamer collars, don't you?"

Ryuu frowned, "Not us specifically, but they do exist."

"But how would a bunch of Xenos get their hands on them?" asked Otohime.

"I have a couple ideas," replied Welf. Lili nodded with him.

"Freya is out in the world, and she might be a benefactor of these Sun Seekers," explained Lili, "It would also explain why the monsters glowed purple. That is the colour of Lady Freya's charm, after all. If she helped make some sort of new monster controlling magic item…."

"That…is a terrifying thought," said Daphne.

Elwin was busy grinding his teeth together.

"None of that matters. Lefiya's in trouble, and we're all just sitting here." He punched the ground, "We're nothing but useless right now."

Ais nodded along. When she learned that her friend was in danger, it took all her willpower not to jump up and chase after her. Lefiya was in trouble; that was all that really mattered to her at the moment.

"And we'll find her," replied Urashima. He was the most sympathetic at the moment. If someone captured Otohime, he'd probably slip into a coma. "But we can't run off half-cocked and put ourselves in harm's way. For all we know, we could be running face-first into a trap."

Otohime gave Elwin's hand a squeeze, "We'll find her, I promise." She looked back to Lili, "When do we leave?"

The Dauntless considered the question. If Lefiya was supposed to be bait or a type of hostage, then they had a little bit of time. That said, they still needed to move with a certain amount of speed and purpose. If they weren't careful, their supplies could run out. Thankfully, Welf and Urashima had been able to repair most of the containers. If they got down to Floor Thirty-four, the safe zone, then they could refuel with the Dungeon's bounties. After that, they would have to scout ahead to see how deep the Sun Seekers had gone.

"Mister Lyd, Lili wants you and the other Xenos to go on ahead. We must know how deep the Sun Seekers have gone and if the little elf girl is still alive. We will be right behind you as soon as we can gather enough food to survive," Lili turned to their resident little dragon, "Lady Wiene, you will stay with us to keep track of where Mister Lyd and the other Xenos are."

The vouivre nodded, smiling. She turned to Bell, "We're adventuring together now!"

Bell smiled and ruffled her hair, "We are, Wiene. We get to fight together this time."

"If that's settled, then we better get going," said Lyd.

There had been a setback. One of their party was gone, and they had lost most of their supplies. The swamp monster had lost his servants, but that didn't matter. They were replaceable, and he would probably find more dangerous ones on the deeper floors. On the flip side, the adventurers couldn't be replaced so easily. Lili had been backed into a corner by this monster, but she didn't feel too worried. In fact, she almost smiled. She had found an opponent worthy of her time. All her months of gruelling study under the Goddess Athena were about to pay off in a big way.

She watched Lyd and the other Xenos (minus Wiene) march off to the deeper floors. Then, she turned to the rest of the party.

"You get one hour of sleep. Half of the party for one hour, then they switch and the other half sleep. After that, we get moving. Be prepared not to get any proper rest for the next couple of days," commanded Lili. Then she narrowed her eyes. "One of our own has been kidnapped. They could be in danger, and we wouldn't even know. We are not going to let that stand. Lili won't, and neither will the rest of you. Lili doesn't care if it takes us to the bottom of the Dungeon. We are rescuing the Thousand Elf. Are you all ready?"

Her question was met with grins of anticipation. There was dread in the air and the chance for disaster to strike, but they were adventurers from Orario. This was what they did.

***

Up in Twilight Manor, a high elf was throwing supplies into a bag. She worked with none of her usual care. All she knew was that something horrible was happening in the Dungeon and that she was needed. Her instincts were screaming. She doubted it was for her daughter, Ais was a competent adventurer, but Elwin was new to all this. And Lefiya was still innocent in many ways. One of the two (or both) was in terrible danger; Her instincts were screaming this at her.

So, she packed a bag and grabbed her staff. She began to make her way towards the door when Finn dropped in her way. The prum smiled, but his body was tense. He was getting ready for a fight.

"What do you want, Finn?"

The Braver regarded her, and Riveria noticed that he carried his spear.

"Just making sure that you know what you're doing," said the prum. He had to strain his neck to look up at her.

"Something's going wrong, and my little brother is in danger. I'm going to rescue him."

Riveria began to walk towards the door. Finn stepped in her way. Her ears twitched, and she bit back her rage. She had to stay calm, or there was no way Finn was letting her go anywhere. However, she was so focused that she overlooked Gareth and the other executives filing into the room. The high elf was quite literally surrounded.

"You can't do that, and you know it," replied Finn.

"Oh, and why not?"

"They can't rely on others to solve their problems right now," explained Finn.

Riveria's eyes narrowed. "Their lives are in danger, Finn."

The prum shrugged, "Their adventurers, it comes with the territory. If we went to rescue them, they wouldn't be happy with it. They have to solve problems for themselves." He sighed. "Besides, whatever's down there won't be as bad as what's up here."

Riveria had no response to that, but she felt so wrong. Elwin and Lefiya needed her. She had not been able to be there for him for so long. She needed to make it up to him. She was supposed to be his big sister! This was supposed to be her job!

"So, I should just let him die?"

Finn shook his head, "I don't want anyone to die. But we also can't protect them forever." The prum smiled, "Besides, I trust Ais and Bell to keep them safe."

"You're scared, I get that," said a new voice.

Riveria turned to find Hestia walking down the stairs. Loki followed along, taking in the scene with her usual smirk.

"I am too," continued the Goddess of the Hearth. "In fact, I've been scared about what happens next for over a year now. I'm still running terrified from Freya for what she might do." Then the Goddess smiled, "But we have to keep faith."

Slowly, Hestia reached out to take Riveria's hands. Alicia, the only elf present, blinked in surprise. Sure, she was a Goddess, but it wasn't just anyone that was allowed to touch an elf. Especially a high elf of Lady Riveria's calibre! Still, though, Hestia reached out, and Riveria let her.

Holding the elf's hands, Hestia squeezed tight. "I'm worried, but I'm also kind of excited, you know?"

"Excited?" Now Riveria, and almost everyone else, was confused. The only one nodding along was Loki.

"My children are out in the world, going on an adventure. I'm worried, but I also can't wait to see what they'll do next!" Hestia's smiled turned into a beacon, "After all, they really are something special, aren't they?"

Loki Familia had known extraordinarily little about Hestia. All they really knew was what Loki had told them and what they had heard on the street. They had heard of a lazy Goddess who was drowning in debt. They thought she was a layabout who had gotten lucky with the right kid to take under her wing. Now, though, they started to see it. Why Bell Cranel, and every other member of Hestia Familia, fought so passionately. And they saw where that Familia, who had been betrayed more often than most, kept finding their kindness. Children took after their Deities, and Hestia had compassion to spare. Watching her, Riveria chose to keep faith. Elwin was her brother, which meant that he had her blood running through his veins. He would be alright.

With that, the Nine Hells felt calm wash over them.

Chapter Text

The party took its nap, then resumed its march into the bowels of the Dungeon. They chose to forget about their expedition's original goals and instead moved as fast as they could. In the end, no amount of valis compared to the life of a friend. 

Ais destroyed every monster in her path. She became the Sword Princess in truth, and her face lost all its emotion. The rest of the expedition stood back in awe, but they were not afraid. They understood the necessity behind her destruction. The only thing that made Lili nervous was the possibility that Ais would over-extend herself. Thankfully, Bell was there to back her up. Their teamwork was flawless like they had been fighting together their whole lives. He covered for her blind spots, and she watched his back.

Ryuu took the rearguard, Mikoto at her side. The one upside to the ambushes was that Black Crow had contact with almost every monster type in the Desert. So, while the rest of the party focused on the front, they trusted her to guard everywhere else. Her brain was starting to hurt from how much she had to focus, but she persevered. 

"Let me know when you need a potion," said Ryuu. She held the last of their mind potions, keeping them for her apprentice.

With Mikoto calling the shots, the Faerie Princess could destroy the monsters around her with ease. All Mikoto had to say was the direction and number, and it was like they were never there.

Responding to Ryuu, all Mikoto did was nod. There were too many things hiding in the sand for her to fight. Instead, she called them out as best she could. A scorpion man here, a couple wadjets there, even a baby desert worm. On and on they came, as the adventurers followed their Xenos allies deeper into the Dungeon. Finally, they came to the top of the stairwell. The thirty-first floor beckoned. The monsters backed off, and the two women caught their breath.

"Oi, you two, need a switch?" asked Aisha.

Ryuu shook her head. "I am still full of energy. My elf-sister needs me, and I will not fail her."

Mikoto nodded, "If Lady Ryuu stays, then so do I."

Deep in her heart, Ryuu felt a burst of joy. She had joined Hestia Familia for Bell, but now she had made new friends. She had an apprentice that she cared about deeply. Mikoto was the next generation, and it was Ryuu's duty to guide her. In many ways, Ryuu looked at the stern samurai and saw herself. She smiled at the Black Crow and nodded.

"I am honoured by your words, Mikoto." She placed a hand on the level four's shoulder. "We shall protect those we hold dear, yes?"

"Yes!"

Aisha rolled her eyes. These people were almost too idealistic for her, believing in dreams and honour. Almost. The amazon lifted her padao to her shoulder and sauntered back to the middle of the party. They made their way to the next floor, and she kept her eyes trained on either side of her. They were down a powerhouse mage, and the March Hare and the Sword Princess had ranged ahead as the vanguard. With the Faerie Princess in the back, Aisha had to become the core of the party now. Which also meant making sure that their other mage didn't run on ahead. Elwin was a level three, and he was doing fine in the Dungeon. But being over emotive could lead to lots of stupid decisions. Aisha knew plenty about that. Thankfully, she was not alone in her endeavour.

"Mister Elwin, I'm sure she'll be ok. You trust her to be tough, don't you?" asked Haruhime.

"Yes…well…I know she's strong, way stronger than me, but it doesn't mean I'm not worried," Elwin frowned, "The strong have been brought low before."

"Maybe so," conceded the renard, "But those people were most likely trying to be strong on their own. We will be strong together, and that is why we will win."

Enchantenko's serene manner helped put everyone at ease. Aisha couldn't be prouder of her little sister. Honestly, Haruhime was much of an older sister figure herself now. She had grown all up.

Elwin raised an eyebrow, "You're awfully calm about all this."

Haruhime blushed, "As unfortunate as it is to say, moments like these have become so ordinary in my life, it is hard to feel anxious."

"By the Gods, that is depressing."

Lili snorted, "Reality often is."

The prum had spent much of the journey in quiet contemplation. She was running through possible scenarios in her head, each one more preposterous than the last. She had been made a fool of, but she kept her emotions in check. Lady Athena had drilled that particular lesson into her head. Bringing emotions to the battlefield was the same as bringing defeat. Love your soldiers, care for them, and do everything you could to bring them home, but never let them cloud your judgement. Never let the enemy get under your skin. Obviously, this was not put into practice so easily. Life was messy enough; battles were exponentially more so. 

Near the front of the party, Otohime sighed. From his position next to her, Urashima glanced over. She seemed lost, and her face was frowning. Her nostrils flared, and stray locks of hair fell around her. Even if she still looked cute like this, Urashima wanted to help alleviate her stress.

“Otohime, Miss Lefiya will be ok. We will save her, just as you promised."

Otohime was caught off guard but then looked to the ground.

"As despicable as it might be for me to say, I wasn't thinking about Lefiya."

Now Urashima was confused. Who else was there to think about?

She looked over at him. "You stay close, ok? No matter what happens, I want to be able to see you."

"Always."

Even if his hands were cold and metal, they always felt warmer when she grabbed them. 

Way out in the front of the party, the boy did his best to keep up. This was hard because the Sword Princess had activated her magic. With Airiel now in play, Bell saw how much harder he still had to train. She had become like the wind. Still, though, he did his best to persevere. It wasn't until Lili called for them to slow down and Ais kept plowing ahead that Bell had to get her attention.

"Ais!"

She killed another monster.

"AIS!"

The desperation in his voice carried over, and Ais spun around. She looked ready, her blade drawn and poised to kill more monsters. When she saw it was just Bell, though, she lowered it. Her lips twitched down.

"Why are we slowing down?"

Bell looked back. Everyone was still moving, but Haruhime, Cassandra, and Chigusa moved between the groups. They passed out what little water and food they had. Bell returned his gaze to the Sword Princess.

"Everyone needs to catch their breath, Ais," said Bell. 

"But Lefiya's in danger."

Bell nodded, "And we'll find her. But we can't be half-dead when we do. These Sun Seekers are strong, and this is the Dungeon."

Ais's frown deepened. She knew all of this…but Lefiya was in danger! Lefiya was her friend and needed to be saved. To Ais, it was as simple as that. Which meant flying headfirst into battle. Besides, she knew she would be ok. They were only on the thirty-first floor. 

"Ais, we have to get down there together," said Bell. Then, he really looked at her. "Are you afraid?"

Ais didn't respond.

"Ais, Lefiya won't be like your mother. We'll save her."

Slowly, he reached out to take her hand. When he made contact, her eyes widened. She stopped to stare at their touching palms. Gently, she laced her fingers with his. The storm that raged in her chest began to quiet down. 

"We'll find Lefiya, and then we'll all head home. But we have to do it together, no running off, ok?"

Ais nodded. 

"Can you take a deep breath with me?"

She nodded again. Matching Bell's tempo, she opened her mouth. Her lungs filled with the hot air of the Dungeon, and then she let it out.

"Now, let's fight together."

***

Far beyond the walls of Orario, a different adventure was taking place. In a small village not notable for anything, in particular, a weretiger dug away with a shovel. A mischievous and deceptively carefree, God watched on. He wore a broad-brimmed hat and sat on a stone wall. He kicked his feet like a little boy and watched his child go to work.

"Remember Falgar, be careful as you dig. We don't want to break what's inside," said Hermes.

Falgar grunted in response. Why did he get stuck with ditch digging duty? Why did Asfi get the cushy travelling part of the job?

"Because Asfi knows how to get to where we need to go," replied Hermes.

Falgar stopped digging. Had he said that out loud?

"No, I'm just really good at reading people."

Falgar shook his head and kept digging. It was ten minutes later when his shovel made a dull thunking sound. Hermes smiled.

***

Back in the Dungeon, they had recovered from their small break and were now on their way to floor thirty-two. Bell and Ais stood at the front, but Wiene had moved up to join them. The little vouivre walked between the two and was asking a lot of questions.

"So, you're the one who helped train Bell?"

Ais nodded, smiling at the memories. "Yes, but it took a while for him to agree with meeting me." She smirked, "First, I had to make sure he didn't run away again."

Bell sighed, "This again?"

Wiene looked over to Bell, "You ran away the first time?"

"The first two times. And he tried the third one too," replied Ais, "But I didn't let him."

Wiene frowned, "Why did you try to run away? Were you scared of her?"

Bell, in the middle of the Desert, felt a cold chill.

"Well, Bell? Were you scared of me?"

"Of course not!" screamed Bell. "I was just…ok! I was a little tiny bit scared! But also because I felt bad!"

"Why did you feel bad?" asked Wiene.

Bell looked away while rubbing the back of his head. "Both times, she had to save me. How pathetic was that?"

Wiene pouted, and her eyebrows scrunched together.

"You had to save me when we first met and a bunch of other times. Does that make me pathetic?"

A panicked shine came into Bell's eyes. He threw his hands up and began shaking them with his head.

"Of course not! It's different for you!"

"Why's it different?"

Ais was enjoying this. It was fun teasing people, and Wiene's natural curiosity made it easy. Was this what ordinary people got to do? If that was the case, Ais could get used to this one day. After she saved her mother.

For now, though, she got to focus on Bell and his answer.

"Well… you're a girl."

"What does that have to do with anything?" asked Wiene. Now she was definitely getting annoyed. "Lyd and Fels have been teaching me lots of things. And they told me that thinking like that is bad!"

Ais nodded along. Then, she came to her own startling realization.

"It's like thinking that the Xenos shouldn't be allowed to the top because they're monsters…."

Ais trailed off, her own words causing an epiphany. While that happened, Wiene gave a big toothy grin and clapped like Ais had won a contest.

"Right! Just because I'm a girl or a Xenos doesn't mean that you have to treat me like I'm weak or different! I'm strong!"

The panic faded, and Bell nodded. He gave her a soft smile. "You're right, Wiene. I'm sorry."

"It's not just me! She was right too!" Wiene pointed at Ais. "Apologize to her!"

Now Bell was confused. Why did he owe Ais an apology? However, Ais was smiling, and Bell wanted to keep that going for as long as possible.

So, the boy bowed his head. "I'm sorry, Ais, I shouldn't have run away from you."

Then, he felt a hand on his head. Ais patted him three times.

"It's ok; I've forgiven you."

Bell felt his cheeks warm.

"But."

And there was the dread again.

"I still have to decide your punishment for kissing Ryuu."

Bell looked up with a face of true horror. That began to dissipate when he saw that she was smiling. He still wasn't used to that kind of look from Ais. She grinned with her whole mouth, and her eyes were filled with joy. It was enough to make his heart skip a beat. Then she giggled, and Bell felt his back start to warm up.

***

Down on floor thirty-four, Scipio shifted his body again. Lefiya had grown used to his changing motions in the small campsite she had been taken to. There were no other Sun Seekers, but there was a constant stream of glowing purple monsters. A veritable army of them had started to make their way up from below the safe zone.

"Where are they coming from?" asked Lefiya one day.

Nysa smiled at her. "From the deep floors, silly! Scipio's been gathering them for days for your friends!"

Lefiya frowned, "And what's supposed to happen to them?"

"The beginning of the war!"

Again, Nysa seemed much too happy about that. The banshee's smile threw Lefiya's brain into freefall. With the knowledge that Nysa used to be Filvis, Lefiya kept getting thrown off. She had to actively remind herself that Nysa was not the same person, even if her heart was telling her otherwise. 

***

Just after the battle inside Knossos, Lefiya hadn't left her room for three days. The pain she felt was still fresh, and her heart was still broken. Everywhere she went, people celebrated their victory over Enyo and Ein and all the rest. Their constant reminders drove Lefiya to near insanity, and there was nothing she could do about it. How was she supposed to explain that she had fallen in love with the ultimate evil called Ein? How could she still them not to be happy that they had killed Miss Filvis? None of them would even come close to understanding.

So, she let the people of Orario celebrate. Thankfully, her Familia caught on. The lower members didn't get what was going on, but the executives did. So, they told the rest of the Familia not to mention anything about Ein. They could celebrate their victory, the defeat of Enyo, and even their vengeance for their lost members, but Ein was not to be mentioned.

It was five days later that Lefiya finally left her room. Elfy was next to her the whole time, providing encouragement and support. Her roommate brought Lefiya all her favourite foods, sat in the garden with her, and made sure to stay by her side for as long as possible. The others stopped by to chat, but it was mostly white noise. Only after Filvis's death did Lefiya's emotions finally start to make sense. She only just started to understand that her affection for the Sword Princess was platonic. Ais was, at most, an older sister. Lefiya cared about her deeply and wanted nothing but the best for the Sword Princess, but she didn't like her that way. The truth was, Lefiya was in love with Filvis. It was only after she had admitted it that things had become manageable. That she started to grieve. Nothing was good, but she could keep on living. 

Then, after Bell Cranel got chased out of town, Lefiya began to take an interest in the outside world again. While she had been complacent and mourning her departed beloved, Hestia Familia had been attacked. They had been chased out of the city, and Loki Familia had stood by and done nothing. Most of the Familia put the blame on Ais, but Lefiya felt just as guilty. Lefiya saw that she shared more with Bell than she thought with the rose-tinted glasses of her crush gone. She didn't like him, but she knew he was just trying to do what he believed was right. If he got it wrong sometimes, well, who was she to judge? She had, in fact, fallen in love with a mass-murdering sociopath. 

(Ahhh, the strangeness of youth.)

So, she trained harder than ever before. When the time came, she represented her Familia at the first level-up tournament. Everyone scoffed at her because she was just a mage. She had no primary weapon to fight with on her own. But she didn't listen to them. Instead, she trained with Tiona, Tione, and Ais and begged the Nine Hells for advice. She thought of what Miss Filvis would want her to do and what that boy would have accomplished. She endured the battles and came out the other side. 

The months passed, and the little elf grew. She never forgot about her first true love, but she learned to keep moving. Every day, she woke up to another dawn. Every morning, she would speak to the weapons she stole in Knossos. The talking helped.

Lefiya would continue to train with Riveria. While Lefiya's total firepower was starting to match her mentor's, the older elf still had much more experience in every facet of life. Even in the realm of love, Riveria held wisdom that Lefiya harvested. The Thousand Elf began to move on, but she never forgot.

Life went on, and the seasons changed, but the little elf never forgot about her first love. She adventured, went on expeditions, and fought dangerous monsters. The Thousand Elf became a hero for herself and promised a grave that she wouldn't lose anyone else. Lefiya became a first-class adventurer, all for Miss Filvis.

Many people came and went. Some of them tried to fill the hole in her heart. They all failed. These outsiders just didn't understand. None of it mattered, though. A large part of Lefiya's heart still belonged to Filvis Challia.

Then she met Elwin and started to feel her heart grow. Nothing would ever replace Filvis, but this new half-elf was building his own space. It was annoying and endearing at the same time. The hole was not filled, it never would be, but he helped to clean the edges. But now there was Nysa, who kept asking questions Lefiya barely had the answers to.

"So, why do I know you?"

"We were…friends." Technically, they'd had only ever been friends (and also destined enemies on the field of battle, but Lefiya ignored that part).

"How did I die?"

"…in battle?"

'The big battle where I helped kill you' thought Lefiya.

"What was I fighting for? Were we on the same side?"

"…." 

There was no reasonable answer to that question. Lefiya ignored it, and not-Filvis let her. The banshee had her own dilemma. On the one hand, her desire was right in front of her. She was standing there, just waiting in anticipation to become like Nysa. Then they could be together! But on the other hand, if it failed, Nysa would lose Lefiya forever. 

They were currently spending the night in a small clearing below a large tree. It reminded the Thousand Elf of home. Lefiya almost laughed at the irony. Scipio insisted that they keep the powerful tied up, gagged, and under watch. Nysa volunteered to stare at Lefiya while she slept, but both the marsh monster and the elf had disagreed, vehemently so. Instead, the banshee pouted while she walked the perimeter. She never slept much, and whenever she did, the nightmares followed her. Visions of wolves and a cage made from blades. Explosions of wind, fire, and ice. Then, pain and separation. The only good thing was the little elf's face looking down at her. 

So, Nysa didn't sleep. Instead, she argued with herself about what to do next. Obviously, Lefiya couldn't want to stay down here. She was a human, and the Dungeon didn't like them. But she might die becoming a creature. Nysa almost pulled her spectral hair out. Why was everything so complicated? Why couldn't things go her way? It was only then that Nysa thought to ask Lefiya what she wanted. She ran over, eager to ask the elf more questions, but found her still asleep. The banshee would wake her up, but then she saw how cute Lefiya looked while she slept.

Oh well, another time then.

***

Back on floor thirty-two, the rest of the expedition was also getting to sleep. They wouldn't be down for long, but just enough to keep themselves fresh. The team would've kept moving, but sleep was the best option to recover stamina with their lack of food and water. Elwin didn't like it, but he also knew that the others wouldn't listen to him. Instead, he took the first watch and looked out over the Desert. With him was Ais, who was also feeling restless.

"Have you ever had to worry like this before?" asked Elwin. 

He wasn't expecting an answer. Ais Wallenstein seemed like a nice person, but he knew that she was quiet and private. Two things that he respected. Still, though, anything to try and pass the time.

"I worry like this every day," replied Ais.

Now that was a surprise.

"What do you worry about?"

"My mother."

Elwin blinked. He mulled over the answer in silence. Before he could respond, the Sword Princess spoke again.

"What's your mother like?" asked Ais.

And again, Elwin was caught off guard. 

"My mother?" Elwin shrugged. "Pretty stereotypical, really. A kind woman who was just trying to do her best for her son." The half-elf frowned. "However, there was a lot she had to put up with because of the asshole."

"The asshole?" 

Ais's head tilted to the side. Her face was filled with question marks.

Elwin snorted. "My father, High King Supreme Dickhead, leader of the elves."

"Ohhhh… Riveria's father."

There was a deep sigh from Elwin. "Yeah, Riveria's father, my father…that guy."

Ais nodded. After a moment, she frowned. Elwin felt like he was being interrogated. 

"Do you feel that way about Riveria?"

"No…or at least…not anymore," replied Elwin, "I used to, though. Growing up in a Familia based on its magical prowess, you always know who the top dog is. Now, my old captain was powerful, don't get me wrong, but even she knew better than to tangle with Riveria. She was everything we all wanted to be. She's wise, powerful, and known the whole world over. So yeah, I heard a lot about her." He smiled. "For a while, I wanted to be her. I wanted to be as strong, as renowned, and all that other stuff. She was the reason I trained so hard." His cheeks gained a dusty red shade. "Every day, I told mama that I would become as strong as my big sister so that I could meet her."

"And what happened next?" 

Elwin frowned, and his eyes travelled to some long-gone memory.

"Other elves happened. Assholes who had heard about the 'high half-breed.' They came to jeer, and they threatened mama and me." His hands, resting on his legs, tightened. "The elves in Hecate Familia all knew better. They never said anything, no matter what they thought. But those other elves kept saying horrible things." Elwin looked over to where the girls were sleeping. "Honestly, when I first met Ryuu, I thought she would be like the other ones."

"Was she?"

Elwin began to shake his head, but then he stopped. Then he smiled.

"Nah, it caught her off guard for sure, but she never mistreated me. It's only ever been a little awkward." The half-elf chuckled. "But that's mostly because I'm a blasphemer."

"Blasphemer?"

The stargazer nodded, "Yeah, I don't like performing all those stupid rituals and all that other stuff." Again, he shrugged, "If they don't accept me, I won't take part in their stupidity. It's as simple as that."

"What do Lefiya and Riveria think?"

Again, Elwin blushed, "Well…I haven't exactly told them that part of my life. I'll get there when I get there, you know?"

Ais smiled, "Then you have faith."

Elwin frowned, "Faith in what?"

"That we'll find her."

"Oh…yeah…I guess so…."

The two sat in comfortable silence. It was a couple hours later that everyone started to wake up. The first one up was Wiene. She had slept in the same tent as Haruhime, insisted on it actually, and cuddled in close to the renard. Mikoto would never admit it, but she felt jealousy that night. Especially when she saw how Wiene's head was nestled in Haruhime's bosom. Chigusa smiled, happy to see her friend finally start to understand her feelings.

Still, the vouivre was the first one up, bouncing around like a bundle of energy. She said good morning to Ais and Elwin, and before anyone could stop her, she jumped into the guy's sleeping area.

"Bell! It's time to wake up!"

"Huh? Aaaggghhhh!!"

"What the hell?"

"What in the world?"

"Oh, come on!"

The boys let out various sounds of discomfort. Elwin watched on, a giant smirk on his face.

"Thank the Goddess I was out here."

Meanwhile, Ais frowned. If Wiene woke Bell up, then that meant she was probably touching him. And Otohime had said that Bell didn't like to sleep with a shirt on. This meant that Wiene's skin (since the Xenos didn't wear clothes) rubbed against Bell's. She knew they didn't have that kind of relationship (they were more like father and daughter), but still…Ais felt an uncomfortable emotion bubble in her chest. So, she stood up and made her way towards the tent.

"Now, wait a minute!"

"Hold on, Sword Princess!"

"Wait…Ais is here? Aaaauuuggghhhh!!!!"

The girls scrambled outside to find Elwin laughing his head off.

After a pathetically small breakfast, the party was off again. They quickly marched through floor thirty-two, finally making their way to the dreaded floor thirty-three. They had filled up their canteens as much as they dared at the end of the river of the thirty-second floor. Now, they had to make their way along an old path that they couldn't fully see. There would be no way to restock their supplies until they made it to floor thirty-four. They had walked for a couple hours on the new floor in total peace. Naturally, this was when things started to go wrong.

The first thing they noticed was how the sand shifted. It began moving in little waves. They heard the sound of the wind, down in the Dungeon. Then, they saw clouds on the horizon. There was a moment of dumbstruck silence when this happened. Finally, it was Aisha who sprang into action.

"Sandstorm!"

The party ran for cover. Unfortunately, there was nowhere to hide. Lili looked on, blinded by the monster bearing down on them. It was sentient wind, hot and burning. It moved so fast that it could tear the skin of a level two and rend the flesh of a level one. Combined with the terrible environment and lack of supplies, running into this monster was as bad as it got. If they weren't careful, they would most likely be picked up and scattered throughout the Desert. The level fours and fives could survive without food and water, maybe, but it would be a death sentence for the level threes, and Haruhime especially. Thankfully, it was still a monster. Which meant that it could be distracted and fought against.

"Wind blade!"

Ryuu's magic lashed out. She was challenging the monster, hoping to turn it away from her friends. While most of the party ran off in one direction, Ryuu left from the back. She ran the opposite way, leading the Sandstorm from her friends. She was so fast that by the time Mikoto noticed, it was too late.

"Lady Ryuu!"

Her shout was barely heard over the whipping winds. The rest of the party turned to watch in horror. Now that the monster was this close, it was all many of them could do to stand their ground. The storm was too strong to approach.

That didn't stop two of them, though. Bell and Ais both began sprinting towards the Sandstorm. They watched Ryuu make contact, and then she was in the air. With nothing to hold on to, her lithe elf body got carried away. The March Hare ran forward.

"Firebolt!"

The little flame did nothing. Before they got any closer to their new foe, Bell looked back. Ais stood next to him. He looked at the Sword Princess.

"Tell Lili that I'll meet everyone on thirty-four." He grabbed both her hands. "Ais, keep my family safe, ok?"

Ais looked at him. She met his gaze and nodded.

"I swear, but only if you come back."

Bell smiled, then he ran off into the storm.

As he got closer, he heard chanting over the dull roar.

"Cross the sky and run through the wilderness, run faster than anything else. Imbue the light of stardust and destroy the enemy."

As he got closer, Bell smiled. Of course, she was still fighting. When he saw the characteristic green glow of Ryuu's magic, he tried turning himself in that direction. Using what little control he had, Bell charged argonaut for five seconds. Then, he kicked off the ground. The action propelled him forward at a breakneck speed. He tried to manipulate himself closer to Ryuu's distinctive green shape in mid-air. Eventually, he got close enough to grab her wrist. She saw him and smiled. Then she turned back to the eye of the storm.

"Luminous Wind!"

There was an explosion as her green wind met the acrid dust colour of the Sandstorm. The resounding boom sent them flying off, but Bell held on tight. Wherever they landed, they would do so together.

The expedition party watched them fly. The Sandstorm raged while it died and left a large cloud of debris, but they were still able to spot their Familia members sailing off into the distance. Mikoto felt them leave the radius of her White Crow skill.

Lili was forced to watch them go. She looked between the direction they had left and where the trail to the thirty-fourth led on. She hadn't moved for a minute before Ais spoke up.

"Bell said he would meet us there. For now, we have to keep moving. We need to save Lefiya," said Ais.

"Now hold on just a second," began Welf, "Yeah, Bell and Ryuu are tough, but they're out there without any food or water. And they have no way of finding their way back. They could be wandering for days."

"Maybe we should split up?" said Otohime.

Daphne shook her head. "From the looks of things, we're going to need all the manpower we have to fight those Xenos creatures."

"We can't leave Bell and Ryuu alone!" cried Wiene. She turned back to Ais, "You said you were going to protect him!"

"I did, but Bell asked me to protect all of you," replied Ais. She faced the group. For a moment, she was unsure. But then she shook her head. Her blonde hair bounced back and forth. Finally, she looked up.

"I don't know any of you very well, but I knew Bell. If he said he'd meet us on the thirty-fourth floor, he'll meet us there. Has Bell ever willingly broken a promise?"

"No, he hasn't," responded Haruhime.

"Then we keep going. And if anything happens." Ais drew a final breath. "I'll be there to save you."

Aisha nodded, "Well then, you heard the lady. First, we go down and get the little elf girl, and then we come back for the prude and the virgin." She licked her lips. "I'm drowning in anticipation."

Welf chuckled, "Yeah, ok then. Besides, wouldn't it be nice if we rescued Lefiya before we met with Bell?"

"I will make Lady Ryuu proud!" declared Mikoto.

Ouka nodded, a large grin tugging at his lips.

"Well, Chigusa, ready to get going?"

The ordinarily quiet girl nodded.

Elwin had already started marching down the trail.

***

Scipio saw this conversation. He saw through the eyes of a flying roc in the sky. He had been spying on the part while they moved and had used his army to manipulate the Sandstorm into attacking. He looked down at a collection of stones. Each one had a number on them. He grabbed the rocks with '2' and '3' on them and moved them to a separate area.

Oh yes, everything was coming up golden for the marsh monster.

Chapter Text

Chapter 26:

Lili was alone in Altena. The second that Mikoto walked into Nike's colosseum and the gate came down behind her, the prum had no one she could turn to. Armed with only a letter for Goddess Athena, Lili was forced to muscle her way through the city. She came to the House of the Owl, where the city's government resided and was barred at the door.

"Lili said that she is here to see Lady Athena!" She waved her letter back and forth. "She has the necessary introductions; now let me through!"

"No can do, street urchin," replied a guard. He wore a white cape, clasped with the sigil of the olive branch.

Lili looked down at her clothes and cursed her ineptitude. Her shirt was ragged and filled with patches. Her shorts, which never fit in the first place, had only gotten rattier over the past couple of months. She frowned, looked at the guard, and then returned to the city.

She had some coin on her, but not enough for a proper set of clothes. She considered her options. There was pickpocketing and general thievery, but she was better than that now. She wandered the streets, searching for opportunity. Then she came to the marketplace. Merchants shouted for wares, and she watched people barter and trade weapons and armour. The prum looked down at the one magic sword she had brought with her for defence and smirked.

A dozen swaps later, and Lili had the magic sword and half it's worth in valis. She had also acquired a new set of clothes. The blouse was perfectly tailored, and her new pants felt good and clean. She spent the night at an upscale Inn where the prum got a hot bath and a warm meal. Lili was proud of what she had accomplished. She also understood that she had enough money to run away. Do this for the rest of her life and retire happily. But that was never really an option.

The next day, Lili walked up to the gates, feeling much more confident. The guards did not feel the same way. Again, they rebuffed her attempts. But Lili just grinned.

"What is the issue?" Lili pulled out a coin pouch, "Will this let me in?"

Now the guards were frowning.

"Do you think we'll be swayed by petty bribery?"

"Lili knows you will. You were bribed last week by the leader of the merchant guild."

Being tiny, and having access to transformation magic, had its advantages. Lili had found out many secrets with a couple pointed questions.

"Now, take the valis Lili is providing, or have your secrets revealed to your precious Lady Athena."

The guards sighed and moved away. They let Lili in, and the prum kept lying and threatening as she walked. Sometimes she didn't know if the threats were real, but all people were the same. They had their secrets and told their lies. Eventually, Lili came face to face with the head guard. This was when she presented her letter. It only took a minute before she was let into the throne room. Then, she started to learn.

***

With the party, Lili had stopped to sit on her own. They had made their way to floor thirty-four and rejoined with the other Xenos, but now they were resting. The others had given her some space, but she knew that they were all worried. Lili didn't care about that, though; she was too busy kicking herself for her ineptitude. Again, she had failed, and now Bell and Ryuu had been swept away.

"Alright, that's enough time for a pity party, don't you think."

Lili grunted in response as Welf came to sit next to her. The smith had watched from afar and then elected himself to go and talk to her.

"It's not a pity party; Lili is making sure not to attack anyone else. She does not want to lash out and hurt the other members of the party," replied the prum.

Welf nodded. "That's fair. Why don't you try letting us help, though?"

Lili could feel her toes curl. "Lili shouldn't need it. What was all the training for if Lili can't outthink a damn monster?"

"You know that's not the case," said Welf, "This thing's been planning this attack for a lot longer than we've known. All it had is the element of surprise. Not to mention, we need you a little bit. We're down some key players right now, which means that it's all hands on deck from here on out."

Lili sat there quietly, absorbing Welf's words. Then as if struck by lightning, she bolted to her feet.

"Everyone! Gather around!"

The party jumped at her shouting. When they didn't move, Lili shouted some more. Finally, the rest of the group came together and started to listen.

"This monster has been making us play his game, but this also means he's shown his plan," began Lili. The others raised an eyebrow. Seeing their incomprehension, Lili smirked, "Even if this Xenos is smarter than average, he's still thinking like a monster."

There was a beat of silence, then Wiene raised a hand. Lili nodded.

"What does that mean?" asked the vouivre.

"Lili is happy that you asked Lady Wiene. This Scipio has been working to remove our strongest members. He has also been trying to separate us. It has wrecked our supplies." Lili paused. "But it did not target the supporters or mages. It has been thinking in terms of raw strength and power, not utility and versatility. This tells us two things." The prum held up two fingers for emphasis. Silence answered her.

Welf rolled his eyes. "Ok, professor, what's so important about that then?"

"One, it does not know the full extent of our abilities. If it did, it would have most likely targeted Lady Haruhime first. Two, our top fighters are stronger than theirs, specifically Master Bell, Miss Ryuu, and the Sword Princess. This monster general has been working hard to remove our top fighters because it's afraid it will lose that fight. Now, we don't have our powerhouse mage and Master Bell or Miss Ryuu, but we still have the Sword Princess and Hippolyta."

Aisha grinned, "I like your train of thought. Not to mention, if we can free the little elf girl and hold out till the March Hare and Faerie Princess return…."

"Our strength will be exponentially greater than theirs," finished Lili. The prum shrugged. "That is Lili's thoughts anyway. The monster is scared because it knows that its greatest strength is the number of monsters. Ours is the quality of our adventurers."

Lili paused to let everyone soak in the information.

"Which leads Lili to the current plan! Part one, rescue the Thousand Elf!"

Lili turned to Otohime, "We're going to need a big distraction." For the first time, the Dauntless lost some of her enthusiasm. "Lili is sorry to ask."

Otohime shook her head, grinning like an apex predator, "It would be my pleasure!"

Lili turned back to the rest of the party. "Good, now here's what the rest of you will do…."

***

Back in the desert, Ryuu awoke to find a body curled around hers. Since this was Bell, the feeling would usually be pleasant, but the Desert heat made it practically unbearable. She shoved him away.

"Waah!"

Bell screamed as the elf's level five strength sent him flying. He shook the sand from his head and looked around.

"Where are we?" asked Bell.

Ryuu shrugged from her spot on the ground, "I don't know. Somewhere on the thirty-third floor." She stood to better take in her surroundings while shaking sand from her ears. "I cannot see the river or anything else. What supplies do you have?"

Bell scratched the back of his head, "Lili only trusted me with a dual potion. She was afraid that I would get separated from the party and lose the last of our gear."

Ryuu smirked, "A well-founded fear then." The vice-captain checked her pockets. "I myself only have a couple dual potions and a half-filled canteen. Along with my weapons."

Bell nodded along, bringing out the Hestia Knife and Hakugen. Thankfully, the sand had only made their armour dirty with minor scratches. There was no real damage. Welf Crozzo's hard work had paid off.

Ryuu offered her hand to help Bell stand up, and the two partners began to walk. Ryuu explained that the best plan was to walk towards the Dungeon's wall and then follow it to an exit. Unfortunately, they did not know if they would be heading towards floor thirty-two or thirty-four. Even so, it was the best plan they had. They fought what monsters they had to, but then they saw something form in the distance. An extensive set of rocks began taking shape, turning into a building.

When they got closer, Ryuu stuck her hand out. She ran her fingers along the outside, tracing the patterns of bricks.

"You know, many adventurers take these ruins as the Dungeon indicating its shift," began the elf.

"It's shift?"

"Towards the man-made structures of the deep floors," explained Ryuu, "As if the Dungeon evolves and transitions on its own like a thinking creature."

Then she started to walk towards the ruins. Bell scrambled to follow.

"Wait! Didn't you say that it was dangerous to go ruin hunting?"

The elf shrugged as she walked inside. "The danger is in looking for them. Once you've arrived, the danger begins to drop off. At least, that's what the stories say."

"…I thought no one ever made it back," replied Bell.

Ryuu nodded. "That is almost entirely true, but there is at least one story. Otherwise, how would we know they existed at all? However, this happened many, many years ago. Even before Loki Familia came to Orario."

Bell peered inside while Ryuu walked through, unafraid. The elf continued her story.

"Two sisters from a forgotten Familia travelled through the Dungeon. One, who was talented and arrogant, wanted to prove that she could do something that no one else could. The other, who was kind and loyal, followed her to keep her safe. They went down in the Dungeon without telling anyone and almost died from a lack of supplies," explained Ryuu.

Bell frowned, "Not monsters?"

Ryuu's hair swished as she shook her head. "The more powerful sister was truly great. The only thing that put her in danger was her hubris. She never considered that she would need so much food and water in the desert. In their hunt for greatness, they got lost."

"So, what happened?"

Ryuu smiled, "The story says that another powerful Familia was on its way back from an expedition. One of its supporters got terrified from a fight and ran off into the Dungeon Desert. He ran so far that he ended up at the same ruins as the sisters by accident. With his supplies, the three of them made their way home."

"That's so sweet…."

Ryuu nodded, "Some believe that it was the beginning of a romance between the kind sister and the supporter."

Bell stood still for a moment. Then, he nodded. "I think I like that story…a lot."

"So do I."

Within the ruins, they found little that could be helpful. Some edible roots were growing in the cracks, which they took, but they didn't bother with any treasure. It was all useless anyway. They did find a dagger, though. It was simple but most undoubtedly well-made. Bell looked it over and noticed that there was a message on the blade. He squinted, trying to read it in the dark light. Thankfully, his level five eyes were able to make it out.

'To my Meti.'

A strange feeling washed over the boy named Bell Cranel, and he decided to tuck the dagger away in his pant loop. Ryuu found him later, but she did not ask any questions. The elf just nodded, and they left the ruins behind.

They marched on and on towards the wall of the Dungeon. It was some long hours later when they got there. Bell ran his hand along with it before looking both ways.

"Which way, Captain?" asked Ryuu.

Bell, caught unawares, looked left and right. If they went in the wrong direction, then they risked being too late to help. Which way, though? Bell could not see any difference. All there was, was sand. He sighed and dropped his hands. They fell onto the dagger he had picked up. He drew it out. Maybe this blade could guide him? Bell looked to Ryuu before blindly tossing the dagger into the air. When it fell, the pointy end was most facing to the right. Bell looked at Ryuu again, who nodded. She was hoping that Bell's legendary luck was lending them a hand. The two set off down the wall and prayed that they were heading in the right direction. Ryuu trusted in Bell's developmental ability, and Bell trusted in the dagger.

***

Lefiya woke up to find that it was night in the Dungeon. The sun had shifted, and there was little noise. There was still movement, but that was from the other end of the floor. More monsters came up from the deep floors, filling out Scipio's army. The strategy seemed to just be to overwhelm them with numbers. A standard practice from monsters in the Dungeon. Thankfully, Lefiya had been able to avoid another conversation with Nysa. But that meant she had slept the day away. Now that night had fallen, she was wide awake with too much energy.

Her senses were on high alert, which meant that she heard the rustling in the foliage. She looked across the clearing and noticed that there were no guards. What happened to them? Just as the thought crossed her mind, something roared off in the distance. It came like a challenge and was one that Lefiya had heard before. While she searched for the source of the noise, the trees rustled again. Shadows dropped, and Lefiya whirled around to defend herself. However, it was not monsters like she had been expecting.

"Lady Lefiya, are you alright?"

Lefiya blinked a couple times as her eyes adjusted to the light. In front of her stood a couple of ninjas, weapons at the ready.

"Miss Mikoto," Lefiya turned to the other one, "And Mister Urashima?"

"It is us. Now, shall we get going?" replied Urashima. He moved forward to cut her bonds.

Lefiya hesitated, afraid of what Nysa would do. But then she remembered that the creature wanted to operate on her. She raised her bonds and let the Living Weapon get to work.

"Is that Lady Otohime off in the distance?" asked Lefiya.

Urashima's grip on her bonds tightened.

Mikoto answered, "Yes, she and some of the others are serving as a distraction."

The Thousand's elf's bonds fell away. She rubbed her chafed wrists and began to stand up. The other two gestured for her to follow them back into the woods. Lefiya tried to mimic their movement and stealth but failed horribly. Twigs cracked, and pebbles shifted. Every second, she thought they would be discovered by one of the many patrolling monsters. However, as they walked, she found piles of dust scattered about. It was Mikoto that answered the unspoken question.

"Lady Lili discovered that Scipio is using the special control collars to 'see' through the eyes of certain monsters," explained the Black Crow, "By examining past encounters, we determined where he was looking and how much he can see. Lady Otohime's distraction seems to be taking most of his focus."

"So then, what's the next step?" asked Lefiya.

"Not here," replied Urashima, "We must get back to the others. The good Xenos have helped us establish a base camp."

"They don't want to take part in the fighting," continued Mikoto, "But they will assist us in taking care of the others."

"Take part in the fighting?" Lefiya tilted her head.

"Lyd wants to avoid Xenos fighting other Xenos. And Lili agreed. She says that it's what Bell would've wanted," replied Urashima.

"Is Bell not around?"

The two of them stopped. They moved in silence, and Lefiya felt her worry grow. Even if she didn't like him, Bell had earned his place in her life.

"Sir Bell and Lady Ryuu were swept away by a sandstorm. Lady Wallenstein suggested that we continue on and wait for them to reach us," answered Mikoto.

Lefiya absorbed that knowledge in silence. They were down two of their strongest fighters, and she had been captured. Things were bleak indeed. However, she was still surprised that nothing had come hunting for her. Again, she checked over her shoulder. Was she hoping to get caught by the not-Filvis?

Urashima took her hesitancy to mean fear, though and did his best to assuage her doubt.

"Lady Lili believes that Scipio hasn't considered a rescue operation. A monster would never believe in keeping others safe like this. She says, and Lyd agrees, that they think of survival of the strongest. The belief is that Scipio thinks we are on a quest for vengeance. That we think that you are already dead."

Lefiya didn't have time to consider that response, so she kept running. Just as the sounds of fighting started to fade, members of the party came into sight. Haruhime watched on, and Lefiya saw the renard's face light up at the sight of Mikoto (and the others to a lesser degree). Daphne and Cassandra also stood by for protection and healing, respectively.

They were in the homestretch, and success was just insight. Then there was an explosion.

When the dust cleared, everyone watched in horror as the Banshee stood at the center of a crater.

"Give me back my Lefiya!"

***

Nysa had seen the giant dragon coming. It was not trying to hide as it started to tear into Scipio's punitive army. When she saw it, though, she had been confused. Why was there was a dragon monster that they didn't know about? When the first attack happened, she ran to the source. What she found was a bipedal dragon laying waste to their forces. It raged like a natural disaster, not focusing on one monster or group in particular. Which meant there was no strategy for Scipio to counter. How did someone fight a tornado?

Then Nysa arrived, and Scipio found his answer. With a bigger disaster.

The Marsh Warden simply gestured at the rampaging beast, and Nysa nodded. She hurled herself at the black dragon, and the beast fell off balance instantly. It began trying to grapple with the Banshee. Fangs mashed, and the sounds of claws reverberating off each rang through the floor. Even from the initial confrontation, the lead tactician of the Sun Seekers knew that Nysa would win. Her potential was high. However, she would be much drained, which would not do. So, Scipio sent an order for his monsters to assist, but they disappeared just as they began their assault.

Entire waves of monsters from the deep floors, gone in a flash. Scipio focused even more on the battle and began to call in even more monsters. Unfortunately, they were being dismembered as soon as they arrived. Finally, he saw the cause of his distress. There were two women with swords drawn and on the move.

Hippolyta and the Sword Princess went to work, and Scipio was left reeling. Even they could not survive all of these monsters. So, what was their play? Were they so ready for revenge that they would throw their lives away? Scipio considered the thought, his contempt for adventurers clouding his judgement, but then he realized something important. There were only two adventurers and whatever that monster was. Speaking of which, was it a Xenos?

Scipio did not spend time with the other faction of Xenos. Even still, he felt like he would know. So, was it an adventure? However, in his distraction, he failed to check in on the prisoner. Finally, it was Nysa that had the foresight (or obsession) to think of Lefiya. She had all but finished off the dragon and had sent it careening. With a final shockwave roar, the black beast had been sent flying through trees. It collapsed in an unconscious heap. When she had moved to finish it off with her great luminous claws, the Sword Princess intervened.

While Nysa had been able to best her fellow monster, and the fight had drained her. Ais Wallenstein was undoubtedly a formidable opponent, and Nysa didn't have the stamina to keep going. At best, they'd kill each other. And Nysa couldn't die; there were still so many questions left to ask her dear Lefiya. Would she be ok, though? Would Lefiya get hurt in all this commotion? Nysa asked this to Scipio, and the marsh Warden grunted in surprise. He unfocused for a second and looked through the eyes of his monsters.

When he came back, his moss rumbled in displeasure.

"She's gone."

Nysa took off running.

She flew through trees and tore a path along the ground. Rubble went flying as she searched for the Thousand Elf. Over the past couple of days, Nysa had memorized Lefiya's smell just in case someone tried to separate them. She refused to lose her little elf again. With uncanny speed, she barrelled down towards the clearing where they had kept Lefiya. Then, she followed the smell and torn-up foliage. These humans had a head start, but they were not as fast and had to dodge around the environment. The Banshee had no such issues.

It took a bit of time, but she caught up. She found that puny group of humans, and her Lefiya was with them. She crashed between them and sent them all flying in different directions. Nysa was careful not to hit Lefiya, but she didn't care about the others. She saw how the one with the shiny arms flew into a tree and how the girl with black hair threw her body over the one with blonde hair and a tail.

"Lefiya! Why are you leaving me?" pleaded Nysa.

Lefiya flinched away.

"Nysa… it's…more complicated than that," replied the little elf.

Nysa frowned, "No, it's not! You need to stay! I need you!"

There was a beat of silence before the Banshee continued.

"I think I love you…."

Lefiya was torn. She looked into those eyes and saw Miss Filvis. Then her heart keened. She hesitated, about to move forward. The only thing holding her back was the obsessive quality in Nysa's voice. The part that wasn't Miss Filvis, a full-grown elf, but a young creature who hadn't been alive for a year. The Banshee got ready to step forward and steal her love away again. Lefiya opened her mouth, unsure of what would come out. Before either could speak, though, a new voice interrupted them.

"Excuse me," said Haruhime. "If you love Miss Lefiya, have you asked her what she wants?"

The renard had pushed her way up from under Mikoto and decided to take part in whatever unfolded.

Nysa glared at her. "You don't know anything!"

Haruhime gave a gentle smile, "I know more than you think. And I have to ask, do you love Lefiya, or do you need her?"

The question threw the Banshee off guard. Her animosity vanished and was replaced with curiosity. Still so much to learn after all.

"What's the difference?" asked Nysa.

Haruhime looked over at Mikoto, and then she looked away with pink dusting her cheeks. Once upon a time, she needed a young hero to come and save her. She needed him to tell her that she deserved to live. It had taken her a long time and a lot of distance to realize that it didn't necessarily equate to love.

"If you love someone, you want what's best for them, even if it hurts you. You want to be around them because they make you a better person," explained the Enchantenko. Everyone was listening, "If you need someone, it's because you need them to fix something for you. And that isn't love." Again, a look to the Black Crow. "You love someone when you can stand with them. When you don't need to be around them, you just want to."

Nysa and Lefiya both contemplated those words. So long that eventually, even Elwin ran to join them. He had been waiting at camp, like he had been told, but couldn't stand to wait any longer. While the others were distracted, he had snuck away. What he found, though, was this stand-off.

"What's going on?" asked the half-elf.

"This Xenos wants Lady Lefiya to leave with her," replied Haruhime. "Lady Lefiya is debating whether or not to go over." The renard turned to the Banshee, "I'm sorry, I did not catch your name earlier…."

It was Lefiya who responded.

"Her name is Nysa, and she used to be Miss Filvis."

Elwin looked between the two young women. He saw pain and anguish in the eyes of both. The Star Gazer walked over to the Thousand Elf. He took Lefiya's hands, which seemed to shock her out of her reverie. A distant part of Nysa's mind recognized this boy as the one that stood in her way. She bared her fangs, ready to pounce when the half-elf smiled.

"You should go with her," said Elwin. Then he looked at Nysa, "But you shouldn't go back, Scipio."

He dragged Lefiya over to Nysa.

"You two need to talk, for real," Elwin looked over his glasses at Lefiya. The little elf had the decency to look away. "I'm guessing that there's still a lot you're both hiding, and that won't work. Be honest with each other and hold nothing back. It's what you both probably deserve. Then, if you want to, come back to us. Is that ok?" Elwin looked back to Nysa. The Banshee was the wild card in this situation, but Elwin had faith. They were in love with the same woman after all, and neither wanted to see her hurt.

"Try to have something to tell us for tomorrow. I don't know how much longer we can wait."

The Banshee considered the words. Finally, she said, "There's a cave not too far from here. Scipio won't find us, not quickly. Is that ok?" She turned to Elwin. "We'll be back here when the darkness comes again. And we'll have an answer."

Lefiya nodded. She smiled at Elwin before giving him a peck on the cheek in a fit of bravery. Her face was a scarlet red, but she still brought a hand up. She brought their foreheads together.

"Thank you for the help."

Elwin cupped her face. "Stay safe, promise me, ok?"

Lefiya pulled away and nodded once. Then, she walked off with her erstwhile partner. The others watched them go. Finally, it was Urashima who spoke first.

"Did we just make a horrible mistake?"

Elwin shrugged, "Maybe, but it wasn't really our choice." He turned to look over at the others. "Who would we be if we tried to tell the others how to behave? If we tried to explain who to love? Dictating what those two should think? How would that make us any better or worse than Freya?"

An exaggeration, to be sure, but such was the half-elf's reasoning. The others didn't say anything, and they didn't try to stop the two who had left.

"We should probably go and help the others," said Elwin. He looked back, a devious grin on his face. "Your Princess is in danger, right?"

That tossed all thoughts of other people out the window. Without a word, the ninja took off through the trees. Elwin began to make his way towards camp, Daphne and Cassandra (who had been there waiting in silence) walking with him. Haruhime made to follow but felt a hand on her wrist.

Mikoto very pointedly did not look at her.

"You were incredible," said the young samurai.

Haruhime, in a fit of boldness she did not understand, lifted Mikoto's face to look her in the eye.

"I meant every word I said."

The rest of the world faded away. Their faces drew closer. Just as they came close enough to touch, an explosive reverb resounded through the Dungeon. The two startled away, and Haruhime's adrenaline-fuelled confidence disappeared. They looked at each other, turned as red as radishes, and began to sprint back to their friends.

***

Bell and Ryuu did not know how long they had been travelling. It could have been hours. It could have been a new day. Possibly two. All they did, though, was follow the Dungeon wall. They fought whatever monsters appeared, but they still kept walking. They grew tired and ate roots as they marched. They had no water and soon got so parched that they could no longer spit. The heat was unbearable, but then the night came, and they almost froze to death.

They were forced to keep moving and burned through even more energy. They were cold, thirsty, and only had barely full stomachs. But Ryuu's spirit was soaring higher than ever. For the first time in a while, she was happy and unafraid of what the future held. She had already been rejected and sentenced to a lifetime of loneliness (at least to her). Sure, there was Freya after them, but Ryuu wasn't actually too worried about that. So, even while she was freezing and starving, she was happy.

For his part, Bell was playing with the dagger he had found. He was trying to understand what it meant. The fact that the dagger was just lying on the ground meant that it had been dropped and forgotten. Or, it had been left behind on purpose. The message indicated that it was romantic.

"Ryuu, do you know anyone named Meti?" asked Bell.

Ryuu shook her head.

"Bell, I wouldn't worry about a dagger. We should focus on figuring out what to do if we make it to the escape and if we're going up and not down."

Bell nodded, still looking at the dagger. "You're right."

He tucked the dagger away, but the blade remained on his mind. All the way to the stairs that led down. When they saw that, the two adventurers rejoiced. They barely had the strength to make it all the way, but they began making the trek to the thirty-fourth floor. When they reached the bottom, they found Welf waiting for them. The smith jumped up and wrapped the two of them in a hug. His joy was infectious as he lifted them off the ground.

"Oh, thank the Gods and Goddesses that you're here," said the smith.

"Thank you, Welf! Now please put us down!" shouted Ryuu.

"Oh, right! Sorry about that."

The two felt their feet touch the dirt. Ryuu caught her breath while Bell looked around.

"Where's everyone else?"

Welf frowned, "Rescue operation to save Lefiya. Otohime, Ais, and Aisha are causing a ruckus. Meanwhile, Mikoto and Urashima are going to find and free her. They're probably on their way back to the campsite. They're meeting Haruhime, Daphne, and Cassandra on the way."

"And the others?" asked Ryuu.

Welf smirked, "Trying to keep Elwin in his seat."

Ryuu returned the grin while Bell sighed.

"That sounds about right."

The three made their way to the campsite and found that most people were already there. Ais and Aisha had come back, and Urashima was tending to an unconscious Otohime, who had transformed back and suffered total mind down. Even the rescue team had returned. For the moment, no one had noticed their return. The only person missing from their original expedition party was their little elf mage.

"Where's Lefiya?" asked Bell.

The party popped up. Everyone went to intercept him, but the first one there was Ais. She wrapped her arms around him, but then she startled away. She looked down at her arms.

"Why did I do that?"

The others took the opportunity to get their own hugs. Lili held on the longest and squeezed the tightest. Wiene made sure to get her own long hug in. Mikoto was the first to see Ryuu. But still, the two of them looked confused.

"Where's Lefiya?" asked Ryuu again.

That brought the mood down. Ais turned to glare at Elwin, and then she marched off to sit on our own.

"Things have gotten rather complicated, Bell Cranel," said Aisha. "But we can't worry about the little elf right now, though. There's monsters about."

***

Scipio looked out over his legions. Hordes of monsters that had been herded up from below. He controlled maybe a fraction of them, but they were glorious. No matter how strong these top adventurers were, they could be overwhelmed. The only issue was that the boy and the elf could reunite with the party. Hopefully, their exhaustion would wear them down. And even if he failed to kill the big important ones, Scipio could hopefully take out the weak ones who hid at the back. The only issue was…where was Nysa?

The marsh warden knew that she wasn't dead; he would have heard the fight in action. And she wouldn't have allowed herself to be captured either. The Banshee was missing, and so was the elven mage. Scipio looked back to where the opening to the deep floors beckoned. A shuddering gasp made its way through the tunnel. No matter what happened, he still had his trump card on its way. It was only a matter of time.

Chapter Text

Scipio looked down at his plunder. After the battle with the Dragon creature and those other adventurers, the Marsh Warden asked his underlings to collect every magic stone left behind. Now, a small mountain of glittering rocks sat in front of him. He picked up one and put it into his mouth. Then, he grabbed a handful more.

***

Lefiya and Nysa found their small cave and settled onto the floor. A small part of Lefiya's brain was worried that she was getting her dress dirty. She brushed away bits of gravel that had accumulated over her time in captivity. When she looked back up, she found Nysa staring at her. There was some hidden emotion there, in the way the Xenos's claws dragged against the floor.

"Is everything ok?" asked Lefiya. She chose not to reach out yet.

"What aren't you telling me?" replied Nysa.

The little elf tried to speak, but the words kept catching in her throat. How could she explain to this innocent creature who she HAD been? Did it even matter what Filvis had done? Nysa was her own being and did not carry Filvis's sins.

"Nysa, there's some things you have to know," began Lefiya.

***

"Why did you let her go?" asked Ais, for the fifth time.

Every time, the half-elf had dodged the question. Now, though, with Bell and Ryuu back with the group, there were no more secrets.

"We couldn't have won," replied Elwin. He faced Otohime, "I'm guessing that Nysa was the one who took you out?"

The ex-princess was still recovering from her transformation. Currently, she was just eating what was being placed in front of her and drinking water. Bell and Ryuu were doing the same. Still, she nodded to Elwin's question.

"Even after fighting you, who ain't no pushover, she chased us down and caused a crater. With just her entrance." The half-elf shook his head. "She would've killed us."

Ryuu frowned, "So you offered Lefiya up as a sacrifice."

Elwin shook his head, "Lefiya was the one in the least amount of danger. Sure, most of us could've run away with minor injuries, but could we say for certain that we would have all walked away?"

This time, his gaze was on the Enchantenko. Haruhime looked to the ground, her tail drooping behind her. Mikoto reached out a hand and squeezed her dear friend's shoulder. The Black Crow turned back to the Star Gazer.

"This is not Haruhime's fault."

Elwin shrugged and replied, "It's not really anyone's fault, except mine. For now, all we can do is trust Lefiya and hope that she knows what she is doing."

Haruhime looked up. "And we trust that Nysa really has Lefiya's best interest at heart."

"Excuse me," said Bell, who raised a hand. "Can someone explain that to me again, please?"

"This Nysa Xenos used to be a hybrid monster-human. Apparently, it was the Captain of Dionysus Familia," explained Aisha. She looked over to the Sword Princess, "Anything I got wrong?"

Ais shook her head. There was a moment of silence where she looked to the ceiling. Apparently, she was cautious about what she said next.

"Filvis was two people, though. She was also Ein, one of Enyo's servants," Ais frowned, "Which meant that she helped kill a lot of people. But there was also Filvis, who helped us and saved Lefiya."

"Which means that the question is," began Daphne, "Who's in control, Filvis or Ein?"

They all sat there in silence, and then Ryuu asked for more information. Ais began to say everything she could about Filvis, Ein, and Lefiya. While that happened, Lili rubbed her chin, not at all appearing to care about what was happening around her. After all the information had been shared, Welf let out a long breath. Then, he looked over at the prum.

"What are you thinking about, Lil Bit?"

Lili looked up, surprised to find that everyone's eyes were on her. Her mouth turned into a thin line, but then she seemed to surrender. Her shoulders drooped, and she wrung her hands.

"Lili doesn't think that is a real problem right now."

Ais turned her glare to the little prum. Before she could open her mouth, Lili spoke up again.

"It's not that Lili is not worried about the Thousand Elf, but what about the Marsh Warden, this Scipio creature?" Lili looked over to Aisha. "There is still an army of monsters out there, is there not? You barely made a dent in them, correct? Many from the deep floors?"

"And?" asked Daphne.

"Why else would they be here but to march up through the Dungeon and cause havoc with low-tier adventurers?"

From everyone's shocked faces, Lili saw that no one had considered that possibility. She sighed and looked towards Elwin.

"Mister Elwin is right; for now, we have to trust that Miss Lefiya knows what she's doing. We have a different, much more dangerous problem to deal with at the moment." Lili looked out towards the darkness. "Destruction is ascending."

While the others began talking about what happened next, Daphne pulled Cassandra off to the side. The healer looked on quizzically, watching her partner tap her foot impatiently.

"Daphne, is there something wrong?"

The red-haired level four ground her teeth together before pointing off to the party's camping supplies.

"Go take a nap. Do what you do, see if there's something you can tell us," said Daphne.

Cassandra looked on, not totally understanding.

"I thought you didn't…."

"I believe in YOU," replied Daphne, "Now go, I'll talk with everyone else."

Daphne shoved her partner towards her bedroll and favourite pillow. Cassandra looked on, and she felt her heart speed up. The truth was, even deep down in the darkness of the Dungeon, love could spark and blossom.

***

"I…killed people?" asked Nysa.

To Lefiya's face, though, she did not look guilty. She looked confused, and a little put off. As if she didn't understand what was going on.

Lefiya shook her head.

"No, Miss Filvis is the one who killed people."

Lefiya didn't know that she could speak like this. The words came unimpeded, detached as if Lefiya had no problem saying them. Her memories flew back to the moment of battle where she saw all the people practically explode from Filvis's magic.

"So, I'm not a killer?"

Lefiya shook her head.

"No, not yet. But what you become is your choice."

Nysa absorbed those words in silence.

"Was there anyone else?" asked the monster.

Lefiya tilted her head, "What do you mean?"

"In my dreams, it felt like there were two monsters. One of them always feels so angry. The other one, the one that spent time with you, felt happier."

Lefiya internalized those words and pondered their meaning. Was there a difference between Filvis and Ein then? If that was the case, then the obvious choice was to search for the Filvis in the Banshee's memories.

"I feel angry too."

Not like that.

Lefiya panicked, scrambling to find a way to draw out Miss Filvis. Then she saw the pain in Nysa's face, and Lefiya felt her heart calm. Someone was in trouble, and they could use her help.

"Why do you feel angry?" asked the Thousand Elf.

"Because I can't go anywhere or do anything," replied Nysa. "I'm a Xenos remember? We're not allowed to go up, only down."

Lefiya sighed, "That's true."

What could she do to respond? She was an elf who had grown up in a forest far from here. She had been allowed to travel and go where she wanted. Looking at the beautiful, ethereal monster in front of her, Lefiya's heart keened, and she felt her mouth frown.

But Nysa smiled, "That's why I'm so happy that you're here. I finally found someone who can understand me."

The Xenos almost reached out with her claws but then thought better of it. Lefiya chuckled at the distraught monster and then reached out on her own.

"But I don't know if I can. I can be there, and I can help you, but I won't understand you," replied Lefiya. "I'm not a Xenos, Nysa."

"But you could be one!"

There was a hopeful but terrifying look in Nysa's eyes. Lefiya didn't know what kind of answer was being expected, but she didn't like it. No matter how sympathetic she was, Lefiya was happy as she was. She had always felt insecure, but not about her looks. And she didn't feel nervous about her abilities as much anymore either. Lefiya loved who she was.

"I could, but I'm sorry, Nysa," said Lefiya. "I don't want to be a Xenos."

Nysa frowned, "Is it because we're dirty?"

Lefiya's hair swished as her head shook.

"Is it because monsters are disgusting?"

"No."

"Because you don't love me enough?"

"Would you only love me if I became a Xenos?"

Nysa frowned. "That's not fair! You can change! And we can be together if you do! Why won't you change for me?"

Lefiya felt herself smile. "It's easy to forget; you're still not even a year old. We can't be asking questions like that if we want to make anything work."

Excitement bubbled in Nysa's chest. "So, you want to love me?"

"Maybe. Things are complicated. I loved Miss Filvis, but you're not her, right?"

"But I can be! If you want me to!"

Lefiya shook her head again.

"You're still not getting it. Neither of us should be making those kinds of changes."

Nysa was ready to tear her hair out.

"What makes you think so? What do you know about love?"

Lefiya shrugged. She didn't feel like she knew a lot, but she had heard from and talked with most people she knew. She had seen Tione's one-sided love for the Captain. Riveria had told her about what had happened with Aina so long ago. Lefiya saw what had happened to Ais when Bell Cranel left the city. The little elf didn't understand what love was, but she knew it when she saw it. She also knew when it wasn't real. When it was dark and obsessive.

"I don't know, but neither do you. I'm willing to talk and give this a try, but only if we do it honestly," replied Lefiya.

Nysa growled. "Big talk from a liar! You didn't tell me what I did!" The Banshee looked down at her claws. "I really am a monster." She looked back up at Lefiya. "And you can't love me, can you?"

Now it was Lefiya's turn to frown.

"Haven't you been listening? I'm saying I'm willing to try!"

"You're a liar! You're a lying surface dweller! You lied to me about who I am! And you're lying about love! You just want to go back to that other elf! Without me! Well…" Nysa remembered waking up in the cave. Nightmares that kept haunting her. There had only been one relief. "I'm not letting you!"

"Ok, so what happens next?"

Lefiya felt her heart beating in her throat. She was sure her skin was even paler than usual. Thankfully, she was sitting, or else she would have fallen to the ground. Trembling wracked every fibre of her being. But when she spoke, she was remarkably calm. Over a year ago, she had lost Filvis Challia. She did not want to lose someone else that she loved.

"Are you going to change me through force? Are you going to stick a magic stone in my chest?"

Again, Nysa growled at her.

"No, but I'm going to make sure that you only want to stay down here."

Lefiya's heart stopped.

"What does that mean?"

"I'm going to do what I was told. I'm going to raze Orario to the ground."

***

Aboveground, Riveria was slowly losing her mind. She paced the halls at all hours of the day, and her usual refined composure had all but disintegrated. Alicia had been assigned to follow her and make sure that the high elf still ate, drank, and slept. The poor big sister figure was a wreck and a victim of constant verbal tirades. Riveria needed to take her frustration out somewhere, and the elf served as target practice.

It was only a day later that she stormed into Finn's office. Even if she was primarily a backline mage, she had the strength of a level six. The Captain's door came off its hinges when she stomped in. The prum was looking over their books, trying to find ways to plan out expeditions.

"Give me another reason why I can't go down there and check on them?" asked the Nine Hells.

Finn didn't even bother looking up.

"You'd doom the rest of us."

Riveria's face scrunched up. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Two of our top adventurers are underground. If you go, how will we stop Freya Familia? If you leave and take others with you, Freya could attack us."

Riveria frowned, "If we lose Ais, Lefiya, and the others, we'll lose anyway."

"We live on the edge of the sword Riveria. Leave, and we might be doomed. We might be doomed right now, depending on what's happening in the Dungeon." Finn shrugged, "I could be totally wrong, but as of right now, I am the Captain of this Familia. For whatever goes wrong, you can hang me up by my thumbs."

Riveria's eyes narrowed down to slits.

"I'll hold you to that, Finn."

***

Bell had not totally recovered from his ordeal. Not only was his throat still incredibly dry, but his mind was still drained from his battle with the sphinxes. Ryuu was in a similar position. The two sat back-to-back, under strict orders to recover as much mind and power as they could. The rest of the party, and their Xenos allies, were preparing what defences and traps they could. Welf was sharpening their weapons, and Urashima was preparing some nasty surprises of his own. The only other one resting was Otohime, who still sleeping off the last of her dragon transformation.

“Bell,” said Ryuu.

“Yeah, Ryuu?”

"Do you we'll be ready for what's next?"

"Which part?"

Ryuu snorted. The sound made Bell happy. In the small amount of time after Ryuu's confession and their talk, the elf had smiled and laughed more than the past year. Bell didn't love her that way, but he wanted nothing but happiness for her in the future.

"Let's stick with what's happening right now. There's an army of monsters out there, led by a terrifying Xenos monster that is at least as tactically smart as Lili. We're down our powerhouse mage, and me and you aren't fighting any time soon. Same with Otohime. I believe in our Familia as much as anyone else, but what happens next?"

Bell sighed.

"As much as you might not want to hear it, we have to trust Ais. She'll take care of us."

Ryuu did hate that, though. She was no longer content with just being good; she wanted to be great. She had lost to Ais Wallenstein in the race for Bell's heart, but that was the last time she lost ever again.

"I'm done resting; let's go see what we can do."

The second she stood up, Bell lost his support and fell backwards. He rolled onto his front and tried to stand up. By the time he was able to scramble up, Ryuu was already walking away.

"Wait a second! Ryuu! We still need to rest!"

"I don't want to!" replied the stern elf.

As they made their way towards their allies, Bell tried to keep up. Mikoto was the first to spot them from the air. She touched down, her wings tucking behind her.

"Lady Ryuu, Sir Bell, you're not supposed to be here," said the scout. "The two of you should be resting."

Ryuu crossed her arms and raised a brow. Mikoto withered under her Vice-Captain's stare. She said nothing as the Faerie Princess marched past. When Ryuu was out of earshot, Mikoto turned to Bell.

"Excuse me, but is Lady Ryuu, ok? She seems to be…out of sorts," said the elf's apprentice.

"I have no idea," replied Bell. "Ever since the desert, she seems to be more…energetic?"

Mikoto looked over at Bell.

"And what did happen in the desert?"

Bell's face turned a deep crimson. He looked to the ground and rubbed the back of his neck. Mikoto's eyebrows shot up, and she began to blush. The red crawled its way up her neck.

"So then…Lady Ryuu made her feelings known?"

Bell whirled to look at Mikoto. "You knew this whole time?"

Mikoto gave a perfunctory nod.

"Yes, it was quite obvious. Well, to everyone except you, that is."

"Why didn't anyone tell me!"

At Bell's dumbfounded face, Mikoto rolled her eyes.

"Sir Bell, this is not our place to say. Besides, we all wanted to give you the chance to figure it out on your own." Mikoto looked to the ground. "Not to mention, there are also others that are interested in you. It would be unfair to take Lady Ryuu's side and not theirs."

When Mikoto looked up, Bell almost flinched. There was something else in Mikoto's gaze that he had never seen before. Her fists were clenched, and her lips had turned down into a pronounced frown. Was she angry about something? The emotion was so much that Bell completely forgot the 'others' part of Mikoto's statement.

"Is everything ok, Mikoto?"

Mikoto's face did not change as she responded, "I'm fine; why?"

"You seem angry about something," replied the scared boy.

Mikoto blinked and then seemed to realize what kind of state she had been in. Her body relaxed, and she bowed to Bell.

"I apologize, Sir Bell; I don't know what came over me. I must be over-stressed from the situation." Mikoto looked over where the others were. Bell could just barely see everyone hard at work in the distance. "Truly, I think we're all focusing a bit more on our relationships. It helps keep us distracted." She looked over at her companion. "That said, we are all willing to listen if you want to speak."

Bell opened his mouth to ask her what she was talking about, but then it all snapped back in. Before all these issues with the Sun Seekers, everyone had learned about his aunt. He looked Mikoto in the eye and saw that there was no judgement there.

"Sir Bell, this might be insensitive of me to say, but I was not there. I never saw Orario's dark days. Neither did Sir Welf, Sir Elwin, Sir Urashima, Lady Otohime, or many others of the party. All we know is second-hand." She reached out to pat him on the shoulder. "I do not begrudge you keeping secrets, but please remember, we must all be for each other in this time. If we cannot trust each other, then what will Freya do next?"

Mikoto made to walk off, but Bell grabbed her wrist before she could go. She turned back and almost judo flipped him but stopped when she saw the shy smile on his face.

"Thank you, Mikoto. I promise I'll talk about everything when we get back to the surface."

Mikoto smiled and nodded. "Remember Bell, we promised to be there for each other, always. I don't ever intend to break my word."

The two walked towards the makeshift battleground, and Lili soon directed them towards some shovels. They got to work digging earthen works and building small walls. Welf walked by at one point and dropped off their weapons and gear. Their armour had been undented and cleaned, and their blades had been sharpened. At Mikoto's request, Bell helped her tuck away the numerous pieces of gear she had brought with her. Seeing how this battle would be more significant than many they had seen before, the Black Crow did now want to get caught off-guard. For the first time, Bell noticed her eyes drift over to Haruhime.

"Mikoto…are you making eyes at Haruhime?" asked Bell.

Mikoto felt the heat crawl up her neck to the tips of her ears. "I do not know what you are talking about. Besides, I do not believe that Lady Haruhime would be interested back; there is someone else much more impressive." She turned to find Bell smirking. "What?"

"Who just told me to try to be more aware?"

Mikoto's mouth was agape. Was this really the same Bell, making a joke and teasing her?

"You've been growing to?"

Then Bell grew nervous again and started to splutter.

"Only slightly…mostly. I've just been trying to be closer with my friends."

Mikoto smiled, "I think we should get back to work for now."

***

Hermes looked up from the book on nautical travelling to find Asfi standing in front of him. Stretched out behind her were the Familia members that had travelled with them over the last couple of weeks. Asfi waved a set of papers in front of him.

"This is everything that you'll need to finish your journey." The blue-haired adventurer frowned. "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

Hermes shook his head, "If my predictions are correct, then you'll be needed back home. You'll also be needed to escort our guests." The god stood up. "Remember, though, you have to find everyone else first, and then you can head home."

Hermes surveyed the people in front of him. He counted along with who was here. When he reached the end, he smiled as he nodded to himself.

"I see that our dear Lulune has already started to make her way back with the packages?"

Asfi pushed up her glasses. "Ever since her battle with the Black Crow, she has been much more driven than normal."

"That Familia, they really do have an inspirational air around them, don't they?" Hermes looked to his bodyguard. "Come Falgar! It's time we went on our way!"

The tiger-man sighed. As Hermes traipsed off, Falgar waved goodbye. The rest of Hermes Familia offered their condolences. Asfi felt uneasy but also knew that Hermes sending her away was his way of telling her how much trust he had.  She turned to her Familia and their two guests hiding in the back and motioned for them to get moving. This next bit was going to be complicated.

***

Scipio surveyed all the monsters gathered. He had scouted those humans and human lovers and watched them build their puny defences. Let them gather; he would wash over them like a wave of death. Now that he had eaten all those monster stones, he felt more potent than ever before. The only piece missing was…

"I'm back."

He turned his great mossy head to find Nysa walking towards him. She was alone, though, not a prisoner in sight.

"What happened to the little elf girl?"

Nysa's glare frightened him, even now when he was as strong as ever. When he turned back to give more orders to his thralls, Nysa turned with him. The Banshee watched as monsters were corralled en masse. They were still holding back, but just barely. Soon, they would be too many. She checked over her shoulder, where the looming darkness of the thirty-fifth floor beckoned.

"How's the backup plan coming along?"

Scipio laughed, his excellent mossy hide shaking.

"I'll take that as a good sign."

The two walked forward, trying to get a better perspective of their army. Scipio saw how distracted Nysa was but waited to confront her. Obviously, things had gone wrong lately, and there was plenty of blame to go around. He also didn't see the point in getting angry at her. All of them, every Sun Seeker, was fuelled by rampant emotions of their heart. He was no exception.

"I let her go, by the way," said Nysa. "I sent her back to her little friends. I want her to be there when we crush them. I want her to see with her own eyes, then, when we go up into the warmth, she can watch as we raze her city to the ground." Nysa's smile returned, larger and more grotesque. "Then, I'll be all she has left. She'll beg to be one of us, and I'll let her." Nysa turned back to Scipio. "No killing Lefiya, got it?"

Scipio nodded. That was fine by him. The rest could burn anyway. The only one that mattered to him, and by extension the rest of the Sun Keepers, was the boy with white hair. They did still have a deal with their benefactor, after all. Once that had been settled, they would burn Orario and its despot Queen. They would burn the same way he had, once upon a lifetime. Typhon had promised him this, and his King was good on his word.

***

Elwin had just finished his section of the defences. Now, he was on lookout duty. It was his job to wait and see what would happen next. He was also on the lookout for Lefiya. As much as he wanted to run back to the clearing where they had left her, he knew that no one should adventure alone right now. So, he waited and waited. Eventually, he saw a figure approaching through the trees. The lighting had grown dim, so it was hard to make out. He raised his staff and got ready to chant under his breath. Any thoughts of worry, though, went out the window when he saw who it was. He almost dropped his weapon when the silhouette of Lefiya came spilling out of the fog. Her body was pale and shaking. He took off his cloak as he ran and draped it over her shoulders. She barely acknowledged his presence.

Lefiya just kept walking while Elwin guided her. Eventually, they found the campsite. The Xenos had taken over guarding for the time since they could see in the dark, so the entire party was there. When Lefiya wandered in, Ais jumped up from her position next to Bell and crushed the tiny elf in a hug. When she barely got a response, the Sword Princess pulled back.

"Lefiya…are you alright?"

Lefiya shook her head, and that was when the dam broke. Tears began to stream down her face as she buried her head in the crook of Ais's neck.

"I lost her again, Miss Ais! I lost Miss Filvis, and it's all my fault!"

As the crying intensified, the rest of the party backed off to give them some space. Bell, in particular, left to go find Lyd. He was feeling his strength come back, but he wouldn't say he was one hundred percent just yet. He hadn't taken any potions, as they were saving those for the life-saving emergencies. Among the potions was the phoenix feather. Urashima was still working on incorporating it into a mixture, but apparently, he had remembered something he read once from a long time ago. At the moment, he was talking with Otohime about legends from their homeland. Haruhime soon joined them.

Bell found Lyd sitting on his own. Weine and Lett were nowhere to be seen, but they were probably helping the other Xenos prepare. Lyd wasn't going to fight his brethren, not yet, but he would help them destroy monsters. That was his promise. At the sound of Bell's footsteps, Lyd turned.

"Ahhh! Bellichi! It's good to see you! Are you looking for Weine? I can find her if you want," said the lizardman.

Bell shook his head. "I'm ok Lyd, actually, I was wondering… where's Asterius?"

Thoughts of Bell's rival had long been on his mind. When Freya Familia had attacked, Asterius was the only one who had been able to stand up to their executives. In the face of Ottar, though, the large Black Bull had lost. He had been forced to retreat, and Bell's last sight was of his large muscular back.

Lyd scratched his chin, deep in thought.

"I don't know. He took his loss roughly and went deeper into the Dungeon than any of us have ever gone before. Since then, we haven't been able to track. No one is strong enough to go down there and look. Fels was talking about sending an expedition to search for him, actually. Now that we're working with Loki Familia, it might jump up the priority list." The lizard man sighed. "With everything going on, we could use his power."

Bell nodded and joined the large lizard man in silence.

***

"Woah Woah Woah," said Daphne, "Take it easy, Cass."

The healer had woken up in a state of hysteria. She had demanded her partner's attention and had been rambling on and on for hours. Daphne felt her patience fraying and would've snapped earlier, but something in Cassandra's face got her to keep listening. She was effectively under the healer's spell.

"What's wrong? Did you see something?"

Before Cassandra could start up again, Daphne placed a hand on her head. The normally scowling adventurer allowed her face to relax. "And speak slowly."

Cassandra mustered her courage to explain herself as best as possible.

"I saw waves the size of trees crashing into a wall. The wall held, but a piece fell off. When it hit the water, it was obliterated," began the dreamer. "When it did, a great wailing cry went out. With it were dots of twinkling lights the colour of ash." Daphne frowned. This did not bode well. "Then, the wind howled across the water. It crashed into the biggest wave and sent droplets everywhere, but the wind vanished."

'Wind, water, and stone,' thought Daphne, 'But no rabbits, lightning, or bells. Is the kid not involved this time?'

Ever since the disastrous expedition, Daphne had taken it upon herself to read up divining dreams. There was little else but folklore, but she studied it all, just in case. She studied symbology and mysticism till her head was a cloud. All for this moment. She was going to help Cassandra or die trying.

"What else was there?"

Cassandra frowned, "Fire. Flames the colour of the rainbow came out and were caught in a bowl. With it was the heart of a hero and the lights of ash. It all went into a bowl, and clear spring water poured out. The dark side was washed away with the water and the wind."

"Was there anything left underneath? Could the burning water be a reference to the smith? Crozzo swords could set the sea on fire, after all," replied Daphne.

For a second, Cassandra said nothing.

"What?" asked Daphne, tapping her foot.

Cassandra ducked. Her face was the colour of salmon. "It's just, you've never taken an interest in my dreams before."

Now it was Daphne's turn to blush. "Yeah, well…I am now! So what comes next?"

Cassandra shrugged, "The tide was washed away, and nothing was left behind. The wall still stood, though."

Daphne frowned. Before she could get too deep in her thoughts, Cassandra tugged on her sleeve.

"We're probably the wall, Daphne. We'll be ok, for the most part," the healer turned to look over her friends, "The question is, who's the one that crumbled away?"

Chapter Text

The battle was in full swing, and the attacks were relentless. With the earthen works that they had set up, there were three distinct choke points. This meant that there were three fronts for Lili to deal with. Obviously, it wasn't perfect, and there was a fair amount of slippage, but the overall division had the monsters focused to certain points. Just like they had up in the Desert floors, the party had split into three distinct squads. The difference this time was in the squads' make-up and focus.

On the right, Ryuu was in charge. With her were Daphne and Ouka. There was a small party of Xenos there as well, led by Lett. Over in the middle, Ais Wallenstein stood at the ready. Desperate in hand, she had Otohime, Elwin, and Urashima as a backup. Lyd was behind them, with a dozen Xenos in reserve. Finally, on the left was Bell. With him were Mikoto and Chigusa. His final reinforcements were Weine and a small party of Xenos. Running in-between all three fronts was Aisha, who was in charge of slippage and reinforced any system cracks. When Lili had proposed this battle formation, there was much debate about who should go where.

"I'm the Captain of this Familia and the leader of this expedition," argued Bell. "It's my responsibility to go in the middle."

Ais frowned. "You're still relearning how to fight monsters, Bell, and you're still exhausted." Ais looked over to Lili. "I should go in the middle."

Lili looked over to Bell. She sighed before she replied, "Lili must agree with the Sword Princess." When Bell opened his mouth to respond, Lili glared at him. "It is up for debate who would win in a duel, but the best monster killer here, and possibly in all of Orario, is still Ais Wallenstein."

Ryuu grit her teeth before speaking, "As much as I don't want to say it, I have to agree with our Commander." She narrowed her eyes at Bell. "Also, you're not one hundred percent. Even if some of them are under orders, many of these monsters will strike down the middle. That is their nature, and that is where the fighting will be the fiercest. Which means that is where our strength must be."

Lili nodded along, "Which is why Lili believes that it should be given to Miss Wallenstein, Lady Otohime, Mister Urashima, and Mister Elwin."

That earned some confused stares from everyone present. If the point was to have people who knew how to kill monsters, why send in the three greenest adventurers? Lili smiled.

"This battle will be large and chaotic. It will be hard to maintain contact and give orders. Whoever guards the middle will need to be able to work together with minimal communication." The Braver turned towards their two newest adventurers. "Is there anyone here who would say that Lady Otohime and Mister Urashima don't have the closest bond?"

While the two childhood friends blushed, everyone else nodded along. Then, the half-elf, who was still standing close to Lefiya for support, frowned.

"Why am I going to the middle?"

Lili pointed to the other members of the party.

"A level five, a level four, and a level three at each front. That way, each team will be balanced. You will be the level three, Mister Elwin." Lili paused, considered her words, then spoke again. "You are also the bait. If the Banshee is still out there, we need to know exactly where she'll be fighting."

"Now hold on!" shouted Lefiya.

Everyone startled, as the elf had barely raised her voice above a whisper since returning. They turned to look at her and almost flinched back from the anger in her voice.

"Elwin is not going to be your bait. Don't you understand how dangerous that is?" Lefiya's arms trembled from anger, and she was terribly red in the face. "If Miss Fil-I mean Nysa comes after Elwin, then he's a dead man!"

Lili stood her ground. "Which is why he'll have the strongest member of the party there to back him up." She looked over at Ais. "The safety of Lili's Familia is in your hands; will you keep us safe?"

Ais nodded and turned to Lefiya. "When Nysa comes, how should I handle it?"

The Sword Princess and Elwin were the only two fighters that still used the Xenos's name. Everyone else had started referring to her as 'The Banshee.' Lefiya looked between Ais and Elwin, then she looked at the party. Finally, she looked at the ground.

"Protect our allies. If Hestia Familia is in danger, our priority is to keep them safe." Finally, she lifted her head. She looked at Elwin and pointed at his face. Her index finger was an inch away from his nose. "I swear to the Forest of Wishe: if you do anything stupid or reckless, I'll kill you myself! You got that?"

Elwin blinked, his eyes wide. Then he smiled and took Lefiya's finger in his hands. He nodded once. "Yeah, ok, I promise. Nothing stupid from me." He turned to Lili. "Where does everyone else go, Commander?"

The prum divided up the teams and explained everyone's roles. The adventurers nodded along and began to prepare themselves mentally.

Lili turned Aisha. "Your job will be to fill in any gaps. The rest of us," Lili gestured to the remaining members, "Will be the support group. Mister Welf will be our guard."

Lili turned to Lyd, "You will deploy the Xenos wherever you see fit. But Lili recommends splitting the strongest members among the fronts and a couple more with Miss Aisha."

Lyd scratched his chin. He rumbled low in his lizard throat before he spoke up.

"But then you'll be pretty undefended, won't you, Lillichi?"

Lili shrugged. "If it gets to the point where they can attack our support group, we'll have already lost."

Lefiya frowned, "Then where am I going?"

Lili's smile turned feral. The Thousand Elf felt a shiver go up her spine.

"Lili has just the spot for you, Miss Lefiya."

***

The first couple of hours had been about control and containment. Under special orders from their commander, every front leader had drawn the monsters in. They spotted the special purple ones reporting to Scipio directly and made sure to leave open paths. Before, this had been an expedition of ambushes and surprise attacks. Every move the adventurers had made was about reacting to the Marsh Warden. Lili was done with that. It was their turn to start acting. From a hill overlooking the battlefield, she was able to spot everything. With her command call, she could shout orders.

So, she saw how large the crowds of monsters grew. The hordes had bunched themselves up, with Lili's allies boxing them in. They bobbed and weaved to avoid attacks while still not letting them get past.

"We've drawn them in as much as Lili is willing," said the prum. "Now, let them have it."

"The flame will soon be released," chanted Lefiya. She had already cast the elf ring. Now, it was time for wide-area devastation.

"Creeping war, unavoidable destruction."

At every front, the monsters began to overwhelm the adventurers. The sheer number of attacking beasts was wearing them down. Lefiya watched with a certain amount of detachment as her friends began to buckle.

"The horn of battle sounds aloud; the cruelty of conflict will envelop all."

Her magic circles began to form. Into them, she channelled all of her anger and frustration. In her mind, she imagined her feelings leaving her body and fuelling her attack. Before, she had been a wreck of emotions. Now, though, her allies depended on her.

"Come, crimson flames, the ruthless inferno. You are the avatar of hellfire. Sweep completely, bring a close to the great war."

This was the exchange that all mages knew of. Their frontline provided them cover, care, and protection. The mage did not have to take part in the bloodiest bits of battle. In exchange, though, when their comrades needed them, it was the mage's job to turn the tides.

"Burn them through, Sword of Surtr - my name is Alf!"

Lefiya emptied her mind into her attack. In front of her, a field of a thousand magic circles blossomed.

"Rae Laevateinn!"

There was a flash of red, followed by an ear-shattering boom. Everyone had to stop fighting and jump backwards to avoid the heat. Some shielded their eyes, and others felt compelled to stare at the carnage in front of them. For Ais, she stood in shock. She had seen this kind of magic power before, but never from Lefiya. This was the kind of attack Riveria could pull off. Ais turned to stare at the little elf and felt herself smile, and her heart swelled with pride. Everyone else was in awe. The adventurers of Loki Familia were in a class of their own.

As the dust settled and the heat dissipated, everyone blinked. Before, there had been a horde of monsters, ranging in strength from the lower floors to the deep floors. Now the only thing left was ash and magic stones. The glittering rocks shone and gave the impression of dewdrops on the grass.

But even then, this was still the Dungeon. As soon as the magic was gone, more monsters raced across the battlefield. The adventurers raised their weapons. They were prepared for another attack. Upon the hill, Lefiya fell to her knees and gasped for breath. Her face shone with sweat, and her body swayed. The attack had left her exhausted. Just as she began to catch her breath, she felt something cold pressed against her cheek. Slowly, she turned her head to find a mind potion in front of her. Lili looked down at her.

"Now get ready to do it again," said the Dauntless.

With a nod of grim determination, the elf began to stand back up on shaky knees. She set her feet and swallowed the potion down. The cool liquid trickled down her throat, and slowly her energy returned.

***

From far away, Scipio growled. Its large mossy tendrils swung down and left craters in the ground. Another whipped to the side and obliterated a tree. Next to him, Nysa felt a tingle of joy. Her Lefiya sure was incredible.

'I can't wait to make her mine,' thought the Banshee.

Scipio turned to regard his greatest weapon. His backup plan was on its way, but it would still be a little bit of time. For now, he had a much larger problem to deal with.

"You'll take out the mage?" asked the general.

The Banshee nodded.

"You have your squadron behind you, ready to follow?"

Nysa nodded.

"Is your resolve firm?"

The Xenos started to nod but felt her heart stutter. In her thoughts, she saw the pained face of Lefiya. The way the elf had watched her leave made Nysa sad. Was this really what she wanted? Her thoughts turned to what the renard had said. Her need and what she wanted. Slowly, it was like she was starting to wake up. All of these issues, and Nysa's thoughts of Lefiya, clouded her judgement. That was when Scipio spoke.

"Whatever they told you, can you really trust it? Can you really believe that those surface dwellers want to help you? Those murderers and thieves only care about each other," said the large moss monster. "Remember, we're your friends Nysa, we're the only ones you can trust. If you capture that little elf and make her like us, then you can trust her too."

Nysa nodded once.

"Right. I'll find her and make her like me. Will you follow?"

Scipio looked off in the distance, towards the hole to the deep floors. From the monsters he had down there, he knew that his trump card was waiting in the wings. With that, Nysa, and his new powered-up form, he felt assured of his victory.

"I'll bring up the reserve forces after you distract the mage. Sound good?"

"Yeah." The Banshee's eyes narrowed. "Now, let's get it done."

***

Bell's knife flashed, and another monster fell forward. After witnessing the devastation wrought by Lefiya Viridis' magic, the young adventurer felt something stir. His sense of competition had been stoked, and he returned to battle with renewed fervour. He didn't have a care in the world because he knew his back was covered.

Mikoto had chosen the spear for this battle and wielded it like an expert. Her recent training had been more fruitful than usual, and it would only be later that she made the connection between her training and Weapon Expert developmental ability. She slipped between fighting styles more easily, and she began weaving thrusts and stabs with sweeps and spins. The numbers did not overwhelm her because she was still a gladiator.

Behind them, the little vouivre girl tore through every monster in her way. Weine was a force of nature and fought tooth and claw. She was also trying to show off just a little bit since Bell was fighting right in front of her. The dragon moved like a storm, ripping her large claws through the torsos of her enemies. These creatures from the deep floors ripped in half like paper.

Finally, supporting these three terrifying fighters was Chigusa leading a small squad of Xenos. The small warrior rapidly fired arrows, hitting every weak spot in the wall of destruction in front of her. She fired point-blank, any of her usual nerves gone. If any monster tried to go around the whirlwind of carnage, Chigusa was the one to mark them. Then, the other Xenos, ranging from griffins to war shadows, cut them down. The left was easily the most balanced in defence, offence, and technique. Cooperation was also not a worry, as all Bell had to do was make a motion with his hand. Then, Mikoto or Weine would be there. Orders were shouted, and shots were called. The trust between these three was implicit.

On the right, Ouka held the line. With the big man alone, this front had the best defence. Behind him, Daphne gave orders to the Xenos. Wielding her baton dagger, she directed them this way and that. Her orders were immaculate and well-directed. Her time with Apollo Familia had never been a waste, even if she hated it. She was a leader for sure. And in front of Ouka, the gale rampaged unabated. She moved back and forth and broke bones and crushed skulls. As she fought, she picked up speed. She didn't bother with killing the beasts, just weakening them enough that her allies could take them out. She broke the wave, and Ouka stopped it. Great shield in one hand and a battle-axe in the other, the Captain of Takemikazuchi Familia was a one-man vanguard. The right was holding.

In the middle, where the fighting was harshest, two Princesses danced. Their music was death. Ariel swirled around the Sword Princess, and monsters practically exploded as she passed. She moved within a designated cone and controlled the battlefield. Everyone in the middle took their cue from her.

Nearby, Otohime moved like a graceful shadow. If Mikoto was an expert with her polearm, Otohime was a master. Her bisento flashed silver as it moved; there was a trail of red left behind. Her feet seemed to slide along the ground as she moved. Even if she was new to fighting monsters, she would prove herself today. She wanted to be an adventurer, and this was her test.

Her shadow soon fixed any mistakes she made. The Living Weapon had dropped any pretense of care and grace. Jutting out of his metal arms were a set of artfully crafted long daggers. And in his hands, he wielded a pair of short swords. He had already cast his enchantment magic and moved like the wind. If Otohime was about to get stabbed, he was there a second ahead of time. If she overextended on a thrust, he covered her sides. The second she stepped out too far and broke formation, he followed her into the fray. The two weaved around each other, perfectly in sync in total silence. They didn't even so much as glance at each other; they just knew.

Behind them, Elwin had cast the magic of the Bull and split himself in half. The two of them were only there to support Lyd, though. The Lizardman was truly an elite warrior. While he only wielded daggers scrounged from past adventurers, it did not matter. He made up for it with monster strength and inhuman reflexes. Everybody part was a weapon. His feet stomped down and crushed rib cages. His tail was a whip that lacerated arms and legs. And when a fire wasn't pouting out from his mouth, incinerating his foes, his jaws worked to rip out the throats of his enemies. He easily fought with the potential of a level six adventurer. Elwin's only job was to put anything left alive out of its misery. The middle had the greatest offence, and it was a constant struggle not to lead a charge into enemy lines.

In between each front, there were slip-ups, though. Monsters too quick, small, or agile found their way past the front line. These monsters soon met the business end of a padao. Aisha lived up to her new title and let loose with unbridled fury. While she lacked the refined technique of the Sword Princess or Faerie Princess, she fought with the kind of ferocity that only an Amazon could muster. If Ais had seen her, she would've sworn that Tiona or Tione had joined them. Hippolyta led three Xenos with her; all of them specialized in hit-and-run combat. Nothing got through.

What little did fight its way through was reduced to ashes. Crozzo flames melted the bones of even the toughest monsters, and Welf swung his sword like an over-excited child. Behind him, Haruhime and Cassandra stood with their staffs at the ready. They moved between the fronts and healed as they went. Cassandra with her magic, and Haruhime with what little potions and food they had left. Urashima had done his best to mix up some new ones but could only make so many. Haruhime was also waiting back on her magic, listening for Lili's order. The prum could shout down whatever she needed to hear, so the Enchantenko sat back on her heels. Even if she wanted to cast her magic right away, the time was not right. So, she waited with bated breath, and every time they moved to the left front (where Mikoto was), she felt her heart in her throat.

Cassandra was not much better, and she felt bad. She knew that she could only cast her healing magic so many times. Instead of helping everyone, she only got to heal the worst wounds and most serious injuries. The dreaming healer felt her inadequacy then and soon realized how much of a difference there was between her and someone like the Dea Saint. The only thought in Cassandra's head was, 'If Amid were here, no one would be injured.'

Then, she saw Daphne. Her oldest partner thumped her over the head between waves of monsters. All Daphne said was, "Keep moving, do what you can, and we'll make it through."

Those simple words of unshakeable faith were all Cassandra needed. Her palms begin to settle. She continued to cast her healing magic and do what she could. People were counting on her. And at the same time, she watched out for any signs from her dreams. She and Daphne had talked for a while about what was happening, and they both agreed that the people most in danger were the elves. With what they had heard about Nysa, they assumed that Elwin and Lefiya were prime targets. Regarding the wind, they assumed it had something to do with Ais Wallenstein. She was literally cloaked in the wind most of the time. So, Cassandra spent more time checking on those three than the others. And she watched for what this great big wave would be.

***

Elwin punched out another monster that was trying to crawl away. He saw his copy start doing the same to a lizardman that had made it past Lyd. Things had been progressing as planned for the moment. They had taken out the first wave and were now in combat with the second and third. They would fight until they would get close to breaking, and then Lefiya would recast her magic. Not a flawless strategy, but one that would work for the time being. The surprise factor would be when the Banshee and the Marsh Warden joined the fray. Those two were the real heavy hitters, as well as any other surprises they had up their sleeves. Lili had said to expect the unexpected.

"Elwinicchi! How are you holding up?" asked Lyd between bouts.

Both Elwin's offered a thumbs up.

Lyd swung his blade at an approaching loup-garou. "Can one of you check on the people in front? Make sure that they're handling everything!"

Elwin nodded and ran forward. The copy stayed behind to continue supporting Lyd. It passed the original Elwin their staff, which it had been wielding, and started punching its enemies. Elwin jogged up the line and found that Ais and Otohime had moved up their positions. They were farther forward than they should've been, and Urashima was left to try and catch everything else. The poor ninja bodyguard was starting to fatigue, though. His arms, which were still partially filled with sand, moved sluggishly. Along with that, his clothing was starting to show signs of wear and tear. Elwin slid in beside him to lend a hand. Ura nodded his thanks, and the two of them pushed back with vigour. They fought their way towards the two women upfront.

While Ais was still functioning perfectly, Otohime had started to take cuts and bruises on her body. She still moved as gracefully as before, but the sheer number of opponents started to fit through the cracks. Ura and Elwin helped clear space and bought a moment of reprieve.

Otohime began gasping for air and gave a rueful grin.

"What is it that the Vice-Captain likes to say, 'Death by a Thousand Cuts?'"

Elwin snorted, familiar with Ryuu's well-worn description of the Dungeon. Urashima took the break to look over Otohime's wounds while she did the same to him. The half-elf turned towards Ais's position.

"Do you think she needs a hand?"

As if in response, a whole Lambton exploded. Not only had it been bisected, but it had been stabbed right through the brain. With barely a passing thought, Ais attacked a squad of black rhinos that had started to change their position.

"I think she'll be fine," replied Otohime. She turned to Ura, "You're keeping safe, right?"

Ura grunted, "I'm fine. But you need to pull back; you're moving too far forward."

Otohime turned her head back and forth, only just realizing where she was.

"Shit, sorry about that. Yeah, we'll move back then." She turned to Elwin. "Did you leave a copy with Lyd?"

The half-elf nodded, and the three of them fell back to their original position near the dirt mounds and wooden stakes they had stuck in the ground. This bottleneck helped them stem the tide against their enemies and provided relief for Lyd and the Xenos behind them. After all, this wasn't really the Xenos's fight.

Over on the right, Ryuu had sped up her assault for much the same reason. The larger the burden she took on for herself, the less the others would have to risk. Unfortunately, she was not at her best. Desert heat and exhaustion still plagued her body. But every time she began to slow down, she thought of Ais Wallenstein still fighting. Without meaning too, Ryuu had begun to view the Sword Princess as her rival. It was those moments that reminded Ryuu, she enjoyed being an adventurer.

Back with Astraea Familia, before the tragedy, she enjoyed fighting with her friends. The days were dangerous, and sometimes they left her exhausted, but she always felt fulfilled by the time the sun went down. So, whenever she was about to slow down, she picked up the pace. The moment her technique faltered, she sharpened it beyond perfect. She was the Gale Wind of Orario, its Faerie Princess, and she was going to fight till she was the city's strongest swordswoman. She was on an adventure.

And over on the left, Bell felt his own sense of purpose begin to return. For the past year, he had been running away. Even before then, he had been known for being fleet of foot and retreating. The Escape developmental ability was proof of this. Now, he was fighting. It might have been for his life, but he was still doing it. He looked to his left and saw Weine standing beside him. He was so proud of what she had become, and it made his heart swell. He wanted to protect her and everyone else. Unfortunately, things were about to take a turn for the worse.

***

Upon the overlook, Lili observed the battlefield in front of her. She saw more monsters bunch up, all of them climbing on top of each other to get at her Familia and allies. They would be the fish in her barrel, and she had the perfect hunter. But a thought nagged at her brain. Was this all that the tactical leader of the Xenos could do? She dared not underestimate her enemy and tried to consider what else would be up his sleeve.

"Are you ready for another shot?" asked the prum to the little elf.

Lefiya finished off another mind potion and started to collect her thoughts. Just as she planted her feet, terrible screeching rent the air. The level two Haruhime had to cover her ears to avoid fainting, and almost everyone else flinched. The only ones who stood their ground were the level five's and Ais. When Lefiya heard the noise, she knew what was coming next. And so did a certain half-elf.

Just as Nysa rocketed down to land, Lefiya pushed Lili off to the side. When the impact hit, the only one who felt it was the Thousand Elf, who was blown off her feet and into a tree. She thumped into the wood and slid down onto her butt. Standing in the middle of the crater was Nysa in all her monstrous glory. Her ghostly skin seemed to float around in wisps, her hair like billowing branches on a tree. Her long claws glittered like silver. And her red eyes shone like rubies. Despite the situation, Lefiya still had one thought, 'beautiful.'

"You're coming with me," commanded Nysa. With the tone of her voice, Lefiya almost mistook her for Miss Filvis.

The elf slowly got back onto her feet. She planted them shoulder-width apart and gripped her staff in both hands. She levelled the pointy end at the Banshee.

"No, I'm not," was her reply.

Nysa moved forward. Her eyes took on a crazed hue of red.

"Yes, you are. You're coming with me, and then you're going to be like me. And then, we can be together."

The last part came out like a whisper.

"Why are you so determined to think that's the only way!"

Lefiya was so confused now. Why did her life continue to be filled with punishment and pain? How come she never got a happy ending?

Across the clearing, she saw Lili peer over from behind a fallen tree. At the unspoken question, Lefiya subtly dismissed her with a wave of the hand. This was her problem, and she was going to deal with it as best she could. The prum nodded and then began to make her way down the hill. Lefiya squared up against Nysa.

"Why are you so convinced that I won't love you?"

"Because you're a human! And I'm an ugly monster!" screamed Nysa.

"Not you're not!" returned Lefiya. "You're beautiful and strong, and I'm sure you could be kind to me if you stopped trying to keep me locked away from everyone else!"

The words got through for a moment, then Nysa remembered what Typhon had told her. She shook her head to dispel Lefiya's words from her thoughts. The Xenos and the humans couldn't get along. It wasn't possible. Adventurers were nothing but a bunch of evil murderers. And the supposed heroes? They ran away at the first sign of trouble, always. All they did was use and abuse the Xenos. Lefiya would understand once she was one of them.

"Why can't you give me a chance!" asked Lefiya.

Nysa's rampaging thoughts stopped. She looked the object of her affection in the eye as she responded.

"Because I died once, and I don't want to do it again."

In the end, Nysa was still Filvis. Back before so many lines had been drawn between the Sun Seekers and the old guard, she had heard from the black bull Asterius. How the irregular minotaur had carried over his grudge from a previous life. He believed that they didn't change when they reincarnated. And if he believed in who he was, why couldn't Nysa? She was both the creature called Filvis and the monster known as Nysa.

But then, she realized she was also a murderer. If she was going to be Filvis and Nysa, she had to accept the sins of both. She looked at Lefiya and realized that it didn't matter. And she realized that nothing could change her mind; she was forever beyond redemption. Even if she didn't want to be this way.

Lefiya saw the conflict in her former lover. She stepped forward as if pulled by the red thread of fate. She reached forward and grabbed Nysa's claws in her dainty little hands.

"I won't let you die; I swear on the name of Wishe and the Royal Family. Whether you decide to be Nysa or Filvis Challia, I will always protect you. I will stand by your side as long as you let me."

Filvis couldn't believe what she was hearing. She tried to pull away, but Lefiya held on.

"Even after all the horrible things I've done? This life and before?" asked the Banshee.

Lefiya paused. "I haven't forgiven you, and there will be a long path to redemption, but there is a chance. You have to put the work in, though, and don't expect the same from everyone else! You killed people, and that's something you'll have to live with the rest of your life. But thankfully, I believe in second chances, and third ones apparently."

"And you'll love me?"

Lefiya sighed.

"There's a spot in my heart for you, but there's a spot for someone else now too. And he hasn't killed anyone yet," replied the Thousand Elf.

Filvis pouted.

'Adorable!' thought Lefiya.

"And I guess I can't take him out of the picture?" asked Filvis.

Lefiya snorted, "No, you can't."

Filvis looked down and then back up.

"I'm not saying I'm ready, but I can…give it a shot?"

Lefiya nodded.

"Then so will I."

From down the hill, the sound of footsteps came.

***

Down on the battlefield, Ais started to feel exhaustion creep up on her. She didn't know where Lefiya was, but the Thousand Elf needed to launch her spell soon. For every monster the Sword Princess cut down, three took its place. She had no idea how many monsters were around, but she did know that she had to keep going. As her resolve hardened, she heard someone shouting her name.

Ais turned to find the Dauntless running up to her, the support group in tow. This made the Sword Princess frown.

"Why aren't you with Lefiya?" asked Ais.

Lili stopped to catch her breath. As monsters piled up around them, Welf swung his magic sword. A raging tornado of fire sprung forth to buy them some time.

"The Banshee attacked," replied Lili. "Miss Lefiya said she would deal with it on her own. That means that we can't rely on her for support."

Ais turned away, ready to chase down her friend, but then a monster slipped by and jumped at Cassandra. As easy as breathing, Ais cut it in half. There was no way she could turn from the battlefield.

"Lili already saw Mister Elwin heading up to Miss Lefiya's position," said the Dauntless, "They'll be ok, for now." The prum turned to her companions. "Lady Haruhime, is this close enough?"

Haruhime closed her eyes as if deep in thought. She made a humming sound and nodded. She raised the priestly staff she carried and began to place her feet right behind her left.

"Who are my targets?" asked the renard.

"Mister Ouka, Miss Chigusa, Miss Daphne, Miss Mikoto, Mister Urashima, Lady Otohime, Lili, Mister Welf, Miss Cassandra, Miss Aisha, and the Sword Princess," listed Lili.

Haruhime frowned, "Not Master Bell or Lady Ryuu?"

Lili shook her head. "They both want the priority to be on everyone else." Lili frowned. "Besides, this will be your limit, correct?"

Enchantenko nodded.

Ais opened her mouth to object, but Lili beat her to it.

"We need you at level seven, in case things go badly with the Banshee or Scipio shows up. We don't need Ais Wallenstein; we need the Sword Princess at her most dangerous. Can you do that?"

Ais looked at Lili and saw an image of Finn interposed over top. She nodded once and then looked at Haruhime. The renard smiled kindly, then she raised her staff.

"Kokonoe. Beloved snow. Beloved crimson. Beloved white light. Please let me be beside you - this love I have found at the end of two thousand nights. My name is Magic Fox. Former destroyer. My name is Ancient Song. Former dreamer. For you who beat your wings like a bird, I shall allow the nine spirits to dwell in me. Echo, song of gold, sacred poem of Tamamo. White face, golden fur, king of nine tails. Oh, tails of the auspicious beast, consume all, grant all wishes," chanted Haruhime. Golden orbs of light gathered to her, and she imagined her tails branching out like wisps of clouds. They snuck their way closer to all of her allies. Then, she began the second chant.

"Grow. That power and that vessel. Breadth of wealth and breadth of wishes. Until the bell tolls, bring forth glory and illusion. -Grow. Confine divine offerings within this body. This golden light bestowed from above. Into the hammer and into the ground, may it bestow good fortune upon you. -Grow. Uchide No Kozuchi! Dance!"

The golden tails shot off then, and across the battlefield, all the adventurers felt their power jump. They also took this sign to know that another magical reprieve was not coming. This boost was the last assist they were going to get.

When magic dispersed, Haruhime crumpled to the ground. She had done her absolute limit and passed out from total mind down.

***

Scipio had seen this happen. With the eyes of the monsters he controlled, he saw Nysa betray him. He saw how the adventurers began to shine and how they suddenly seemed able to fight better than before. This battle was not going in his favour, so he went on the move. With his enhanced strength now, he flew across the battlefield and used his vines to collect vegetation as he went. He absorbed the moss, trees, and shrubbery into himself and built into a larger body. And then he roared and put his final card out for battle.

***

Out at the exit of the floor, something dark clawed its way into the light. It had been led from its hallowed halls and had caused total carnage wherever it went. No obstacle stood in its path as it reached ahead with one massive bony hand. It pulled itself forward, dragging its skeletal body across the dirt. What was left of its spine rattled against the trees. It had taken days for it to get this far, and it still smelled that oppressive blood on the wind. The disgusting blood of those interlopers from the heavens lingered on the wind, and the great skeleton would chase down its prey. Udaeus pulled itself onto floor thirty-four, and everything trembled in response.

***

Back with the little elf and her recently returned partner, the two had started to prepare to join their friends on the battlefield. That was when Scipio struck.

Great viny tendrils speared through the Earth and began wrapping themselves around anything within reach. One of them picked up a tree and wielded it like a mace. Another was a whip that tore through rocks. The Marsh Warden made eye contact with the Banshee and bellowed.

"TRAITOR!"

A barrage of vines attacked the two then. They were so off guard that Nysa barely had time to raise her claws in front of Lefiya for defence. Thankfully, they were not alone.

"Sign of the Ram! Aurata!"

A golden shield blazed to life to stop the attack. It withstood only one hit before it exploded into pieces. The magical backlash lifted Elwin off his feet. He was sent rolling through the Earth. While Lefiya ran off to check on him, Filvis charged her former comrade.

“Stop it Scipio!” cried the Xenos.

"Quiet traitor!"

Another club-like vine swung down, and Nysa just barely dodged out of the way. She knew Scipio would not listen right now, so she brought her claws against its mossy flesh. Scipio screamed in pain before swinging another vine. The two began their dancing fight.

Lefiya rolled Elwin up on his side and found that he wasn't breathing. Just as her panic began to set it, the half-elf in front of her dissolved into stars. The clone faded from existence, and Lefiya breathed a sigh of relief. She took up her staff and turned back to where Filvis fought with Scipio. Her Xenos would need help, and she was happy to oblige. Dimly, as a magic circle formed under her feet, she worried about where the real Elwin was.

Unfortunately, Scipio was still a monster. He sensed the magic in the air and turned to regard the little elf preparing her spell. Nysa was much too nimble a target to hit, but this one was nowhere as fast. Scipio began swinging his clubs made of trees, and Lefiya just barely jumped out of the way. Every second swing got a glancing hit, though, and soon she would be too battered and bruised to keep fighting. It was after one such hit that she was left dazed and confused.

A vine started to rush towards her, aiming to stab itself through her chest. Filvis screamed her defiance and placed herself in its path. She closed her eyes and prepared to die a second time.

'At least I'll die for someone good this time,' thought the beautiful Xenos.

Then, she felt her body. She opened her eyes and turned her head to find that stupid half-elf flying in sideways. He had pushed her out of the way and intercepted the stabbing vine. The Xenos registered a distant shriek that exploded from Lefiya's mouth. Filvis continued to stare as the vine went right through Elwin's chest. The adventurer's momentum had knocked it off course so that he was the only victim. Now, he hung suspended in the air, blood draining from his chest. Slowly, he was lowered to the ground as Scipio withdrew his appendage from within.

Elwin looked down at his chest and then at the ground. In front of him was some pulsating red thing. He looked back up at Lefiya.

"I love you," he whispered, too quiet to hear.

Then, the half-elf hit the ground. The life left his eyes as they closed one last time.

Chapter Text

When Elwin was a little boy, he found a poster of a beautiful elf hanging in the Familia Hall. It was on the bulletin board where Lady Hecate posted new jobs and updated info. Something about her face seemed familiar, so he ripped it off the board. The poster said something about the elf, named ‘Riveria,’ apparently becoming a level six. There was something else there that said it was from the Dungeon City of Orario. Elwin knew that these flyers came to them occasionally. In Carien, a city full of mages, they needed to know who the best of the best was. But Elwin hadn’t really seen anything about Orario at that time in his life.

For some reason, people tore up anything about the Dungeon City around him. When he asked his mother, she had said that she didn’t know because there were no flyers. Now, though, he had evidence. Mama was sitting in a spare room, casting some healing magic on another member of the Familia.

“Thanks, Lira,” said the fire mage.

She had just finished healing a burn on his arm. Then, she applied a bandage and handed him a poultice. Seeing that the treatment was finished, Elwin knocked to come inside.

“Come in, Winny,” replied his mother.

Elwin frowned as he walked inside. He hated that nickname, but Morgan said that he had to get stronger if he wanted to change it. Unfortunately, he wasn’t allowed a Falna. Lady Hecate had told him that she would only give her blessing when he found a proper reason for it.

“I have a poster this time, Mama!” 

He waved the parchment in her face, and he saw her eyes nearly shoot out of their sockets. She used her level-enhanced speed to snatch it away from his hands and quickly skim over the contents. The mage she had healed thanked her and then ran off as soon as he could.

“I told you there were posters! Now, why does everyone keep ripping them up?” asked Elwin.

His mother, Lira, tried for a smile. “Ripping them up? What do you mean? Maybe this is just the first that’s gotten here?”

Elwin frowned. “Why is this such a weird thing? There has to be more, right? There would be a lot of mages in Orario, like in Altena, right?”

Lira sighed, then sat down on the cot she used to heal people. She patted the spot next to her. Elwin stood up and sat down, and was immediately pulled close. He tried to struggle, in the belief that he was too big for snuggles, but she wasn’t letting him getaway. After removing his silly hat, the single mother placed her chin on the top of his head and stroked his fine green hair.

“You know how your father-”

“The asshole?” replied Elwin, trying to turn his head. He knew he wasn’t supposed to call him that, but the Captain used that word all the time. She said it suited his father to a tee.

Lira sighed and shook her head. This ruffled Elwin’s hair even more in the process.

“Yes, the asshole, you know how I told you that him and his family are all still locked away in that forest?”

Elwin nodded while his hands played with the fabric of Lira’s pants. He would never admit it, but he loved when Mama held him close. He saw her hands cover his and felt her give him a tight squeeze.

“There’s an exception to that. He has a daughter who lives in Orario. She’s a well-known and powerful adventurer,” explained Lira.

Elwin frowned. “His daughter? So…my sister? I have a sister out there?”

Ever since he ran into his father, the half-elf had known that his only real family was Mama. The rest of the Familia would be there for him, always, but his only ‘family’ was his mother. And he was ok with that. His mama was strong, compassionate, and a wonderful person.

The real issue was the rude looks she got because of him. There had been a serious loss of elves in the Familia ever since Larfal had visited. A few had stayed, but many had left. Said that they couldn’t be around someone as impure as Elwin or someone as infectious as Lira. The young boy had shed many tears for fear of what he had cost his mother.

“Yes, her name is Riveria Ljos Alf. And just like the flier says, she’s become a level six adventurer in the Dungeon City,” replied Lira.

“What’s she like?” asked Elwin.

Lira shrugged and continued to stroke her son’s hair. “I don’t know; I’ve never met her.”

The half-elf turned to look at her, a bright spark in his leaf-green eyes.

“Can we try to visit her?”

Lira shook her head, hating what she had to say next.

“I don’t know if we could. Besides, it’s hazardous. You’d have to become much stronger,” said the nature mage.

Elwin frowned, then considered her words. After a minute of silence, he nodded and hopped to his feet. As he marched out of the room, his mother called out.

“What are you doing?”

“Getting my falna!” he replied. “I have to get stronger!”

***

“NO!” screamed Lefiya, over and over again.

Everywhere she looked, there was blood. Her pristine white stockings had turned a violent red. The pink coat she usually wore was soaking wet after she had tried to staunch the wound. Now, she cradled Elwin’s lifeless head. Everything was blurry from the tears that kept pouring down her cheeks, and she wasn’t sure what was going on. She knew that at some point, she had thrown up, either from the smell or from the sight of the hole in the half-elf’s chest.

Behind her, Filvis was fighting with Scipio. He far outclassed her in terms of endurance and strength, but she was faster and more agile. The two were essentially deadlocked. Of course, the marsh warden had considered attacking the little elf again, but he ran the risk that it might shock her into fighting back. One potent fire spell would be all it took to burn him to ashes. Better to let her wallow in her misery, so she would welcome her doom.

The great monster picked up a tree and swung at Filvis’s head. She ducked underneath before grabbing one of his many vines. She yanked it from its socket with a hard pull and began to swing it around like a whip. She used this arm, one of the dozens at this point, to swat away the rocks. For the more vegetation-based debris, her claws were more than sharp enough.

“Lefiya!” called Filvis for the fifth time.

The elven mage just kept weeping into Elwin’s hair. Eventually, Filvis had to use the vine she wielded to wrap the mage and throw her a bit away into the distance. Scipio had ignored her, for now, but that would only last for so long. So, Filvis launched her away from the hill, trusting in Lefiya’s level five status to protect her from the landing. Unfortunately, she did not have the time to waste on Elwin’s corpse. Instead, she had to leave it there. Thankfully, Scipio had no interest in desecrating the dead body. He was content to leave it be and focus on the Banshee in front of him.

Due to Filvis’s split focus, she almost got slammed with a slab of granite. With lightning-fast reflexes, she opened her mouth and screeched. Before, she was afraid that such an attack would wreck Lefiya’s eardrums. Now, she had free reign. The sound waves bounced into the rock, and it exploded into shrapnel that blasted outward. Filvis had positioned herself in front of Elwin’s body to force the stones elsewhere.

Scipio’s throat rumbled in booming laughter.

“Even when you try to be the hero, you fail spectacularly,” said the monster. “A Banshee in truth, that little elf’s life went from good to horrible the moment you appeared.”

Filvis flinched.

“She had moved on, become stronger, and had even found someone else to love.” Scipio’s laughter continued, “And then you had to try and force your way back into her life.”

He swung the tree down like a club. Filvis jumped out of the way, lashing out as she did so. Her ethereal claws cut through a tree trunk, reducing it to little more than firewood. Just as she landed, another branch swung around and took her in the mid-section.

Filvis felt the air leave her stomach as she was thrown to the ground. She used her more ghostly body to slip out from under the foliage and get some space between her and her foe. The clearing around them had been a lot smaller before, but now the tree line had been pushed back. The hill was covered in bits of wood and stone, and the side looked like it was about to cave in. Filvis took all of this in and began her next attack. Hopefully, backup would be arriving soon. Then she heard the roar of Udaeus and groaned. She had forgotten about that part.

***

Lefiya landed after being thrown and rolled through the dirt. She sat up and saw that she wasn’t too far from the left front of the battlefield. She ran to find the others and give them the horrible news. She found the backline of the Xenos and saw Chigusa fire her last arrow. After that, the raven-haired girl brought out a collapsible spear. Lefiya also saw the distinctive golden glow of Haruhime’s level-up magic lingering.

Just as Chigusa began to thrust and stab with her spear, she saw Lefiya. The elf fell in on the other side and used her staff to fight off a couple monsters. While the Thousand Elf would never be famous for her hand-to-hand combat, she had worked on it hard enough to stand on her own. Chigusa nodded her thanks, and only when there was a lull in battle did she finally turn to Lefiya.

“What happened with the Banshee?”

Lefiya flinched. That barely noticeable movement brought Chigusa’s attention to the rest of the elf’s body, mostly how it had been painted red.

“We need help over here!” cried the level three adventurer.

Coming back from the vanguard, Mikoto, Bell, and Weine carved their way through a knot of monsters. They moved like a well-oiled machine, cutting and stabbing their enemies with incredible precision and rhythm, always looking forward but making sure to keep an eye on the comrades to their sides. They made their way to the Xenos and adventurers and nodded to Lefiya. Weine and the other Xenos stepped forward to fight, leaving the allied Familia to talk amongst themselves. The elf took notice of the golden shine on Mikoto but not Bell.

At the sight of all the blood on her, Mikoto immediately rushed forward to perform an examination. Before she got too far, though, Lefiya was stepping back and shaking her head.

“It's not mine,” said the elf.

“What do you mean?” asked Bell, gaze intent. “Who else was up there? What happened, Lefiya?”

The scared little elf wrung her hands.

“Miss Filvis showed up to take me away. Miss Lili went running down the hill so that I could try and talk to her.” Lefiya could feel her speaking start to speed up. “I managed to talk her down…but..but…but….” Her voice dropped away.

“But what, Lefiya?” asked Bell. The blood wasn’t Lefiya’s, and it didn’t look like monster blood…

“That big, awful creature Scipio attacked, and then Miss Filvis was trying to defend me, but then I got distracted, and then Elwin showed up!”

There it was the heart of the matter. Lefiya felt the tears coming back. Her knees started to wobble.

“Lady Lefiya,” began Mikoto, “Where is Sir Elwin?”

Lefiya just started shaking her head. A second later, Bell dropped his knife. Mikoto brought her hands to her mouth as Chigusa grabbed her. The little far-eastern girl was the only thing stopping her from falling to the ground.

There was a minute of silence. And then Bell asked a question.

“Is the monster still up there?”

When Lefiya didn’t answer right away, Bell grabbed her by the shoulders. He was careful to try and be as gentle as possible.

“Lefiya, please,” asked Bell, voice filled with desperation. “Is Scipio still up there fighting with the Banshee?”

Lefiya nodded as she tried to look him in the eye. She had to look away, though, because of what she feared to see longer than a single moment. There was anger, sadness, desperation, and underneath it all, pure terror.

Bell let her go before bending down to pick up his knife. He turned to Mikoto.

“I’m going up there to help. You’ll need to hold the line without me,” said the Captain of Hestia Familia.

Mikoto opened her mouth to argue before she saw the look on his face. She nodded as her mouth formed a thin line and her eyes changed as she turned back to the battlefield.

Bell turned to Lefiya. “No one is going to force you to fight, but we still have a lot of monsters to kill. Are you up for it?”

There was a time when Lefiya thought she hated Bell Cranel. She thought she hated him because he wasn’t worthy of Miss Ais. Then, she slowly realized that she was jealous and started to think, ‘Is this any of my business?’ Still, though, she did not like Bell Cranel. They just weren’t compatible. She might have respected him as a fellow adventurer and a rival in strength, but she knew that they would never get along. That was just how it was. So, when he asked her if she was up for it, something lit in her. She was angrier than she had even been before, and she was a first-class adventurer from Loki Familia. She gripped her staff tightly before turning towards the monsters.

“Just watch me.”

Bell nodded again before shouting at Weine where he was going. The vouivre didn’t look happy about it, but she understood that it was necessary. Besides, she didn’t have much time to think, what with all the monsters attacking her Xenos brethren. So, she put her faith in Bell. After all, he had never let her down before.

The boy ran off. He held the Hestia knife in one hand while the other was curled into a fist. Particles of white began to gather, and the sound of the ringing bell filled the Dungeon.

***

Elwin opened his eyes to find himself in a great big forest. In front of him was a towering tree, more majestic than any other tree. Its roots were the size of avenues that cut through Orario just like the city’s streets did. It had gnarled knots the size of houses, And everywhere he looked, it was teeming with life. Birds flitted from branch to branch, each one a different colour, each one beautiful in its own way. There were magentas and shades of orange, along with teals and bright red ruby birds. There were squirrels with full bushy tails that darted to and fro along the great trunk. As Elwin admired the tree, he felt compelled to step forward. The second his foot left the ground, though, he heard a voice call out to him.

“I wouldn’t walk forward anymore. Not unless you're sure that’s where you want to go,” said the voice.

Elwin turned to find the epitome of virtue standing in front of him. It was a high-elf, and she looked much like Riveria. However, while Riveria’s face carried lines of stress, this woman’s face had crinkles from too much smiling.

“Who are you?” asked the half-elf. He spun around to take in his surroundings. “Where am I?”

“Welcome to the forest of Lothlien,” replied the elf in front of him. “My name is Celdia, queen of the elves.”

Elwin frowned. “Sorry, but it doesn’t ring a bell. Should I know you?”

Celdia raised a perfectly poised hand to cover her mouth as she giggled. It was the sound of leaves chiming in the wind.

“Perhaps you have heard of an old friend of mine? His name was Albert,” inquired the high elf.

Elwin considered the question before a lightbulb went off inside his mind.

“Right! You were one of Albert Waldenstein’s companions! From Dungeon Oratoria!”

After that startling revelation, Elwin pursed his lips. He looked down at his hands while patting down his body. Finally, his gaze returned to Celdia.

“Am I dead?” asked the half-elf.

The sound of leaves filled the clearing again as the legend laughed.

“For now, yes,” replied Celdia. “But I would not approach the great tree Loth just yet. If you touch it, you’re confirming that you really are dead, and that would be the true end.”

Elwin nodded as if this all made perfect sense. But then he stopped and whirled to really look at Celdia.

“So…am I not dead? And why are you here?”

Celdia smiled, and Elwin felt himself relax, even though her grin was full of amusement.

“You are dead, but the spirits whisper that you might want to wait just a little bit longer,” Celdia said as he moved to sit on a boulder of polished granite. “As for me, I chose to remain so that I could soothe all our kind that came here.”

Elwin frowned, and his brow suddenly scrunched together.

“No offence, but I ain’t one of you lot. Why can’t I wait in the human afterlife place?”

Celdia shrugged.

“I was not the one who brought you here. That would be the spirits. They decided that this place might suit you best.” Celdia tilted her head. “Maybe because of your hair? Besides, since you’re here, you get to spend time with one of the most beautiful beings to have ever lived on the face of the earth.”

There was no boasting in Celdia’s statement. She had been in this domain for hundreds of years, and she knew her reputation. The ancestor of Elf-kind had shepherded thousands of lost souls to the eternal forest and had seen them all become flabbergasted in her presence. She knew who she was and had confidence in that. Besides, one gets bored in the afterlife. She had to have her fun somehow, and teasing the dead seemed like the easiest way. She’d like to think her old friends would be proud of her for it.

However, to her great amusement and astonishment, Elwin just shrugged.

“I don’t know, I mean, you’re definitely beautiful, but maybe the third-best I’ve ever seen? Possibly fourth,” replied the half-elf.

“Oh, and who’s higher than me?” asked Celdia, amusement growing.

“Well, number one is always going to be Mama,” said Elwin.

At that statement, Celdia’s smile lost all its amusement. Instead, it was softer and gentler.

“A wonderful answer. Who else?”

“Second place is definitely big sister Riveria. Even if you look a bit like her, she’s got something else about her. Puts my big sis over the top, no offence,” continued Elwin.

Celdia shrugged. “None taken, and the possible third place?”

Elwin was now little more than an apparition, but apparently, he could still blush. He felt the heat rise through his ears, up to the tips, before he responded.

“This little elf girl.”

***

Back at the battlefield, Ryuu cut down another monster. As the numbers had grown, she had switched her wooden sword for the wind blade that Welf had forged for her. Now, she used it to push back her enemies and give her allies some more time.

Whatever had happened, Scipio was now distracted. The glowing purple monsters moved erratically, and the regular ones were straight-up chaotic. They need to regroup soon.

Ryuu darted back and forth along the line, but she saw her companions take more and more hits, the injuries starting to pile up before they could be healed. Cuts began to form on the arms of the Xenos, and Ouka fell back a step. His renowned strength was starting to fail him, even with the level-up. They needed a change of pace.

“Everyone, fall back!”

At the sound of Lili’s voice ringing over the din of battle, the combatants began to pull away. They were to move back to the mouth at the entrance to the current floor and make a final stand. Hopefully, the Thousand Elf would join them to assist. As the others turned to withdraw, Ryuu stayed to buy them some time. As fatigue took its toll, she cursed herself for not taking the level-up from Haruhime.

“Wind blade!” screamed the elf.

A slice of green shot out and bisected a column of monsters. Just as Ryuu was about to head toward her allies, she saw a monstrosity rise above the treetops. She knew what it was, and it paralyzed her to the ground. Somehow, someway, Udeaus had brought itself up. The Monster Rex had uprooted itself, despite the pain and injuries that would cause, and travelled to floor thirty-four. The elven warrior had only a second to consider what she saw. Then, she turned towards Ouka and Daphne’s retreating forms.

“Tell Lili to send Mikoto!”

She didn’t wait to try and hear their response. Instead, she ran towards the beast. Ryuu was on an adventure. Faintly, in the distance, she listened to the tolling of bells.

***

The middle front had no problem pulling back. As it turned out, a level seven Ais Wallenstein, with Ariel activated, and using Avenger, was the equivalent of an actual tornado. In front of her was absolute carnage, and she almost lost her footing once or twice from the blood of the monsters she had spilled beneath her.

The support group and the rest of the adventurers of the middle had slowly walked away in terror. For a second, they felt sympathy for the monsters.

Ais noticed none of this, though. There was only one task in front of her, to protect the allied Familias. If a single beast started to get past her, she was there. A single thrust let her pierce the heart of a loup-garou. At one point, she leapt into the air to bisect some griffins. She jumped from one winged beast to the next, killing as she went. Their corpses continued to be added to the pile. When she landed, a Lambton burst from the ground to try and eat her. With a flick of her wrist, she cut downward. Two halves fell to either side of her, perfectly sliced down the middle.

“We have fallen back, Sword Princess!” called Lili.

Ais jumped back, disengaging with the monsters before she made her way towards her companions. The others had gathered at the pathway up when she noticed some people missing.

“Where’s Bell?” asked Ais. “What happened to Ryuu?” Finally, she turned to her friend. “What happened, Lefiya?”

All of these questions were asked with an emotionless mask. The Doll Princess had slid into place, but it was all a cover to hide her worry.

“Master Bell is helping Miss Filvis fight, Scipio,” reported Lili. The prum’s eyes were red and puffy. “Miss Ryuu has left to fight Udeaus, and Miss Mikoto will be flying over to provide support.” Her next words came out choked. “The blood is Mister Elwin’s; Scipio killed him.”

Ais felt like her gut had been punched. She had promised to protect these people. It was her one job, and she failed. Then she saw Lefiya’s face and the blank look she got. Then, Ais realized that it would be a hundred times worse for Riveria. No matter how much the high elf would try to hide it, she had been ecstatic at the idea of a little brother.

Ais looked to the rest of Hestia Familia and saw most of them in disarray. All except Urashima, who was rubbing his chin, deep in thought. Ais frowned for a second, but then the roar of the approaching monsters reached her ears. She was faced with a wall of flesh bearing down on her position.

“The Sword Princess will be in front. Miss Aisha and Miss Otohime will be supporting. Everyone else will take care of whatever gets by them. Miss Mikoto, go to Lady Ryuu. Miss Lefiya, prepare your magic.” Lili turned to the Xenos. “Lili knows that she does not deserve this, but we need your help.”

Without responding, Lyd took up a defensive position, followed by Weine. The rest of them filed in after that. Ais walked forward, head held high. She had been suddenly reminded of why she hated monsters.

***

As far as young adventurers went, Elwin was more determined than most. The objective Lady Hecate had set was to become a level three. Apparently, there were so few of those in the world outside Orario that it would be enough for him to travel safely. When he asked why some of the higher-ups of his Familia couldn’t join him, Hecate responded that this was his mission. He had to work for this on his own. So, he trained everywhere he could.

The young half-elf fought bandits and brigands, hunted down great monsters, and trained every day. From dawn to dusk, he worked at improving his skills. Eventually, after three years of trials of determination, he made it to level two. His achievement had involved hunting down a pack of dire wolves all on his own. He didn’t remember the party afterwards.

The next day, though, he walked into the training yard. Like every morning, Morgan, Captain of Hecate Familia, was waiting for him.

“You’re probably too hungover to properly cast spells,” said the powerful mage. “Instead, we’ll work on your staff fighting and hand-to-hand combat.”

Due to the shifting nature of Elwin’s magic, he had to practice his weapon craft more than most. Thankfully, he had people like Morgan and Reginald teach him to guide him through the difficult process.

The scarlet-haired warrior tossed him a training pole before grabbing a pair of wooden swords for herself. She took a battle-ready stance opposite from him and motioned to begin. Elwin gave his staff a few twirls before launching himself forward. He would sweep low, she would dodge, and then they would repeat. Eventually, Elwin called a time-out.

Morgan tossed her hair back. “What, tired already?”

Elwin frowned, “You’re holding back. You’re going easy on me.”

The Captain shrugged before walking back to the other side of the courtyard. She turned to point her wooden blade at Elwin.

“I figured you’d want to jump right in, again, but you need to take a break. Call this a compromise for your mother’s sake, ok?”

Elwin considered it. He took back his battle-ready position.

“Fine, but you’re buying me breakfast afterwards, and I want all the good stuff!”

Morgan laughed heartily, long and hard. Then she smiled.

“Whatever you want, you bratty level two!”

***

Ryuu had begun to jump through the trees. As she moved, she cursed herself. Why was she doing this? Fighting Udeaus on her own? That was something Alise would do. Even now, she could imagine her former captain and the other running along beside her, laughing their heads off.

“Just what am I doing?” asked the vice-captain. She had responsibilities to take care of, after all. She had her Familia. Besides, Ais Wallenstein had soloed the Udeaus before. Surely, the Sword Princess would be the best candidate. But the mere thought of having to rely on her made Ryuu’s teeth ache. The elf realized that she wanted to do this more than anything else. Was it something she had to prove? Maybe. But this was her moment; she felt it deep in her bones.

Finally, she arrived at her destination. Udeaus loomed over her, and she realized that it was not whole. Since it had ripped itself from the ground, its normal dark roots were nowhere to be found. It was half a monster.

‘That’s good,’ thought Ryuu, ‘I’m half an adventurer right now.’

She was tired from battle and still not fully recovered from the heat of the desert. They were both fighting with a handicap at the moment.

“Wind blade!” called Ryuu.

In answer, a cut of green shot forward. It slashed into the great monster’s bony arm. It turned its glowing eyes on Ryuu and roared. She had gained its attention. The only problem was all the other monsters surrounding her. They had heard the call of an alpha beast and rushed to answer it, to aid it. She drew her wooden blade in her other hand and made ready to dual wield. She would have to find a way to kill everything and fast.

Just as she stepped towards the first minion, with Udeaus looming behind it, a shadow flashed in. It decapitated the lizardman that had been standing there and slid along the ground as it landed. Mikoto held her sword aloft, wings outstretched behind her.

“Go, fight the floor boss!” called the Black Crow. “I will guard your back.”

If she wasn’t in the middle of battle, Ryuu might have cried. If Mikoto had been around at the time, Ryuu knew she would’ve been an excellent member of Astraea Familia.

The samurai took to the skies and began a series of dives and swoops. She cut down monsters as she went, using hit and run tactics, trying to save as much energy as possible. With their attention divided, the elven warrior had a clear path forward. She cut towards the Monster Rex.

It responded by swinging a massive bone arm down on her position. The nimble warrior leapt out of its way, and as soon as her feet touched the ground, she launched herself into the air once more. She landed atop the monster’s arm and began to run along it. She cut and slashed as she went, with her magic Crozzo blade leaving deep grooves in Udeaus’s bony structure.

The beast howled in pain as it lifted its arm into the sky. It began to thrash about, trying to shake off the Elven warrior. Instead, she launched herself to try to land near its ribcage. That was when the other arm came swinging. It landed a solid hit, and Ryuu crashed into the dirt.

She climbed back to her feet and saw the black skeleton reach for something on its back. Apparently, it had seen fit to bring a sword with it up through the Dungeon. Massive blade in hand, it swung downwards, aiming where the elf had been. When the black weapon hit the ground, a shockwave rippled out. It sent Mikoto and the monsters flying, and Ryuu just barely held her ground.

She stood up, the monster towering in front of her, and she raised her wooden blade.

***

Filvis wasn’t sure when it happened, but she was happy that someone had arrived. Speaking honestly, whatever Scipio had done beforehand had massively increased his power. She wasn’t far behind, but this wasn’t the right circumstances. In a head-on duel, she was outclassed and outgunned. Then that boy with white hair arrived.

At the sound of a tolling bell, the monster turned around to look in the direction of the sound. For the first time, the Banshee saw fear in the face of her former comrade. She remembered all the times he had spoken of the detestable white light and the nightmares of rabbits.

Filvis was forgotten for a second. Scipio stared at the glowing boy, and the boy stared at the corpse of his fallen comrade. When his gaze returned to his foes, and he locked eyes with the marsh monster, Filvis and Scipio both stepped back. Even when it wasn’t targeted at her, she could feel the wrath that emanated from him.

“Miss Filvis,” said the boy with white hair and rubellite eyes, “You’ll need to get out of the way. Run as far as you can, or else this will hit you, too. And please,” he faltered for a second, “take Elwin’s corpse with you.”

He lifted his one glowing fist and grabbed the arm with his other hand. Slowly the fist uncurled, and his fingers were splayed outwards as if reaching for something. The Banshee took off, pausing only for a second to scoop up the body of the half-elf.

All she heard as she flew in the opposite direction was a single word.

“Firebolt!”

Then, a flash of white resonated throughout the area, its luminosity blinding to anyone present.

Everyone saw the blast. It went from Bell’s fist and carved its way into the wall behind it. When the smoke would clear, there would be nothing but ashes and a deep ditch shooting forward. Any monsters within a hundred-foot radius had been incinerated. A five-minute charge from a level five Bell Cranel. With his boosted stats, this attack was beyond powerful. The only problem was that it left him vulnerable. The only other time he had tried this, in the Valley of Dragons a year ago, he had passed out. And that was when he was working at full strength. The way he was now, he would be unconscious for a couple of days at least.

***

Celdia had shown Elwin the way to a magical pool. While he waited on his decision to move on or not, he watched his friends do battle. He had seen everything so far and was amazed by his friends’ abilities. There was one strange moment, though.

As she watched the enhanced Ais fight off monsters, Celdia had started to whisper to herself. Elwin didn’t hear much, only catching the word, ‘daughter.’ What a strange moment.

When Bell had cast his Argonaut magic, though, the half-elf chuckled. That was his captain, alright.

Celdia looked over at him.

“What’s so funny? Your poor Captain left himself defenceless,” said the elven queen.

“Yeah, but that monster’s probably long gone,” replied Elwin, “Even if it survived, it’s been a cautious thing. After watching Bell pull something like that off, it probably retreated. I mean, I know I would. After an attack like that, I’d be shaken to my core. I’d leave to regroup and refigure my strategy.” He waved his hand in the water, and the image shifted. “Besides, he’s probably realized that it’s almost over.”

In the water was an image of Ais leading a final sortie from the mouth of the cave. The unstoppable horde had finally fallen back. The last of Scipio’s army lay scattered and defeated. What little monsters that remained were hunted down by Lyd and the other Xenos. The adventurers had stopped to catch their breath, and many almost keeled over from exhaustion. That only left one thing…

***

Ryuu jumped back to catch her breath. She was gulping down air, and she felt her heartbeat pulsating in her ears. This damned monster still stood in front of her, but she had worn it down. Many of its ribs were cracked, and one arm lay on the ground, disconnected from the rest.

She stared down at it, lifting her sky-blue eyes to its dark crimson red. This was it, the final bout. Dimly she was aware of Mikoto fighting off the last of the monsters, but most of her focus remained on the challenge ahead.

With its final roar, Udeaus brought its blade down. Ryuu sidestepped to the right, avoiding the brunt of the attack. If she used her magic, she was likely to pass out then and there. That also ruled out the mind fuelled Crozzo magic sword. All that was left was her pure offensive capability. She charged forward and started swinging her wooden blade at Udeaus’s with all her might.

Finally, the Monster Rex lifted it from the ground, and that was when Ryuu struck. She knocked the blade and, by extension, the monster off-balance. Udeaus was not rooted to the ground and only had one hand left. It started to topple over, carried by its own momentum. Ryuu capitalized on this and ran on the flat side of the blade. She jumped up to get herself some space and began to swing down, right into the beast’s heart.

Udeaus dropped its sword and used its free hand to grab Ryuu. Just as its fingers began to close in on her, she swung her sword and dislodged a bony finger. It fell to the ground, and she pulled herself through the gap left behind by its absence. Swinging off its fist, she jumped at the creature’s head. She landed feet first and springboarded off its skull. She could see it now, looking down at the ribcage of the monster, its magic stone heart.

She shot forward like a speeding bullet. When she had landed on the skull of the monster, she had dropped the wooden blade and unsheathed her twin short swords. With fangs of steel bearing down, she felt herself crashing through the bony ribcage of Udeaus. Her momentum slowed; she crashed into the magic stone but could not pierce it. Grappling with her legs, she began to frantically stab downwards.

In her manic state, she failed to notice the blank of the monster reaching for her. It moved through its own body and grabbed Ryuu. As the life began to get squeezed out of her, Ryuu dragged an arm out. Scraped and bruising, she had broken it by forcing it out. Fighting through the pain, though, she drew back with this arm and threw the short sword one last time.

The bladed end rocketed into the magic stone and bit deep. Everything stopped then, and Ryuu saw the cracks begin to form. As they spidered out, the grip on the chest tightened. She watched the strength drain from Udeaus and saw its magic stone begin to chip away.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, it broke apart, and the monster with it. Slowly, it began to disintegrate. Its bones turned to dust, and the light left its eye sockets. The last thing Ryuu saw as she let herself fall asleep was the black sword that remained behind.

***

When the strangers had arrived, Elwin was the most intrigued person in the Familia by far. Lady Hecate had accepted them, and let them stay in their home, the Witch’s Cauldron, free of charge. Apparently, it has something to do with owing ‘an itty-bitty brat’ a favour. However, Hecate was smiling when she said that, so Elwin didn’t think it was too serious.

Surprise, surprise, though, that living arrangement meant that it only took three days before his secret was discovered. He had just gotten out of the shower, and the smith guy was there. He stared at Elwin’s jade green hair but had said nothing. Elwin thought the matter was settled, and that was that.

Later, though, the elf girl sat in front of him. She began to pester him, demanding to know about his connection to Lady Riveria. After getting permission from his mother, he took off his hat to show her his green locks.

At the time, Ryuu had gasped and backed away in disgust. The next day, though, she stepped forward to apologize for her behaviour. She had also said that she would do anything to repay the favour. Elwin grinned because he had just gained a new trainer.

The following month turned into hell. However bad Morgan had been, Ryuu was worse by a hundred-fold. She always took things too far, and every day Elwin went to bed covered in bruises. His mother fussed over him, but he mostly waved her off. This was the training he had asked for, after all.

Eventually, his stats began to climb into the D’s. So, he took off to find an adventure, ever searching for more challenges that might boost him to Level 3. The elf and the smith insisted on joining him, just in case. The three trekked far into the mountains and stumbled upon a clan of bandits. With Ryuu’s level five (which still boggled Elwin’s mind), they made quick work of them. Unfortunately, their fight attracted the attention of a frost giant. Much like dragons, these behemoths were powerful inside and outside the Dungeon. Still, though, the feat had been enough. Elwin had gained his level three.

When the rest of Hestia Familia arrived to pick up their members, Elwin begged to go with him. He had pleaded on his knees and cried his eyes out. Finally, though, the small Goddess with black hair and azure eyes held out a hand. Elwin had never seen a smile so comforting and angelic.

***

As the adventurers began to recover, Urashima ran off to get the supplies they were in dire need of. Filvis had arrived soon after the fighting had finished and was now fretting over Lefiya’s condition. The little elf, though, was busy trying to clean Elwin’s body. She washed the dried blood from his hair and tried to brush the dirt away. Soon, the rest of Hestia Familia joined.

The moment the coast had been clear, Ais dashed off to find Bell. She returned with his unconscious form and put a blanket on him. Eventually, the Xenos came back with Mikoto and Ryuu. Lyd and Wiene carried the elf between them while Lett dragged the black sword left behind along the ground. Wiene laid the vice-captain of Hestia Familia next to the captain. Meanwhile, Mikoto flopped to the ground, utterly exhausted. Haruhime had just woken up and used the opportunity to care for Mikoto (while distracting herself from the sad sight of her fallen family.)

Just as Mikoto was about to fall asleep, hoping to escape the horrifying image of Elwin’s empty chest, someone started shouting.

“All of you! Give me some space!” shouted Urashima Taro. On his back was the bag of every drop item they had gathered on their expedition.

Lili began shouting about how he needed to get his priorities in order. Food and water were what they needed, apparently. However, Otohime just shoved her to the side. The ex-princess was quick to pick up on his meaning and began to move everyone away from Elwin’s now clean corpse. All except Lefiya, who refused to move.

Ura left her there and began barking orders about things to gather. While everyone else sat around in surprise, Otohime listened. She knew where to put her faith and did as she was ordered. She cleaned beakers and gathered water. She took out everything that Ura told her to. All the while, he examined the hole where Elwin’s heart was supposed to be.

“Just what the hell is going on here?” shouted Welf, finally, the question that represented everyone’s collective confusion at the man.

Ura looked at him and withdrew a blazing feather. The image of a rainbow of flames filled Cassandra’s head, and she blinked in surprise.

“Will that really do it?” asked the healer.

“Maybe, but I don’t know how much time I have,” replied Ura. He began using his mortar and pestle to grind ingredients together. All he knew for sure was that he would need a base potion to work with.

“Can someone please explain?” asked Ouka. The big man had been bandaged and was leaning back against a rock. It was Daphne of all people who answered him.

“The feather, it can bring him back,” replied the snarky adventurer. “But he’ll need….” She looked at Cassandra. “What was it? The heart of a hero, and?”

“The lights of ash!” responded Cassandra.

Everyone stopped to look at the two in confusion. Then, a light bulb went off in Haruhime’s head. She grabbed a small test tube and scurried over to Lefiya. She had read this story once before. She did not know what ‘the heart of a hero’ was, but she had a good guess about the lights of ash.

The entire time this was happening, Lefiya continued to cradle Elwin’s head. Now that battle was over, she had started crying again. He had promised not to do anything stupid! But here he was, dead because he had tried to save Miss Filvis’s life. As she continued to weep, though, she felt something cold pressed to her cheek. Too tired to move, she did her best to look Haruhime in the eye.

“Please, why are you touching a test tube to my face?”

The renard blushed but held firm. After some predisposed time, she pulled away.

“In the story of the phoenix, the potion of life required a feather from the bird, the tears of a loved one, and the essence of life…” she trailed off.

Just like her, Otohime and Urashima stopped their work. They, too, had read the story of the young lovers. At the time, it had been their favourite. Except for the tragic ending, of course.

“Life cannot come from nothing,” recited Urashima.

“An equal trade must always be made,” finished Otohime.

“A heart for a heart,” said the two of them.

“If we want him back,” replied Welf, “Then one of us has to die?”

Slowly, the three from the far east nodded. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to do. Lefiya felt herself open her mouth.

“I’ll do it.”

The little elf’s head snapped to look at the source of the sound. There was Miss Filvis, standing at the edge of the clearing. The Banshee had mostly avoided the others until now, content to watch on quietly while they decided her fate. Thankfully, a suitable punishment for her crimes had fallen into her laugh.

“No,” was Lefiya’s immediate reply.

At that moment, she knew she spoke for Elwin as well. He would never agree to someone else dying for him. In fact, he would’ve hated it.

“I am Filvis Challia,” stated the Xenos. “I have accepted who I am, but that also means that I have a lot to atone for.”

“No, you don’t!” screamed Lefiya.

“Your Familia died because of me, remember?” responded Filvis.

“That doesn’t matter right now! All you’re doing is running away again!” cried Lefiya.

“Please, Lefiya, let me do something good for once,” said Filvis. “In both lives, I struggled and fought. Every decision I made led to heartbreak and ruin. As Ein, I almost destroyed the city. Now, though…”

“No!” said Lefiya.

Filvis ignored her and looked to the ninja bodyguard.

“Would my magic stone be enough?” asked Filvis Challia.

Urashima considered it for a second. He was unhappy with the answer, but he was also terribly selfish. In the end, he would pick the life of his brother, and he hated himself even more.

“It should be. Anyone who’d be willing would have the heart of a hero,” replied Ura.

Filvis turned back to Lefiya. The little elf mage was on her feet now, ready to continue arguing. Just as she opened her mouth, she felt something warm press against her lip.

Filvis pulled back and took Lefiya’s dainty hands in her monstrous ones. The Banshee smiled, and Lefiya engraved the image into her heart.

“I wanted to be your first, forever and always. I love you Lefiya Veridis.”

Lefiya bowed her head forward. She felt their foreheads touch.

“I love you too, Filvis Challia, forever and always.”

Filvis looked at Elwin and whispered one more thing.

“Will you hold my hand till I’m gone?”

Lefiya nodded.

With her free hand, Filvis reached inside herself. Tears formed in her eyes, and she felt herself scream. A terrible wail ripped out from her throat. She pulled and pulled until something gave away. Suddenly, she was fading. With what little strength she had left, she placed her magic stone in Lefiya’s palm.

With one last smile, she faded. Lefiya held on until she had disappeared. Once Filvis Challia was gone for good, the little elf turned to Urashima.

“You bring him back, now,” replied Lefiya. She gave him the stone and marched off to find a quiet place to cry. Before she left, she turned to the others.

“She was a hero! And I never want to hear anything else from any of you!”

***

Elwin watched all of this happen and screamed his heart out. He kept repeating the same word: NO! He said it when Filvis suggested giving up a part of herself. He screamed it when he watched her tear into her own chest. It became his mantra as he watched her fade from existence.

That exact moment, a new figure strode out from the woods. She had beautiful alabaster skin, stunning red eyes, and raven black hair.

“Ah, Miss Challia,” said Celdia. “I am honoured that you could finally join us.”

Filvis had no words for her, though. Instead, she walked up to the half-elf.

“Hurt her, make her cry even once, and I’ll haunt you for the rest of your days. Remember now, I’m a part of you.” She jabbed a finger into his chest. “If you try anything stupid, I’ll be watching. And don’t think I won’t possess you.” Finally, she looked at Celdia. “I’m ready to go home.”

“Wait!” called Elwin. “I wanted to say thank you for well….”

With one last glare at Elwin, she walked towards the great tree. She looked back once.

“What comes next?”

Celdia gave one of those soft smiles.

“Everlasting adventure.”

Filvis, satisfied at the answer, brought a hand up. She touched its bark, and then she vanished.

Elwin turned towards the pool. As he looked down, there was a flash of white. Suddenly, the water got very close. He turned to look at Celdia one last time before he hit the surface of the pond.

***

His eyes opened slowly, and everyone stopped to stare. They had waited with bated breath. He sat up and took everything in. Slowly, he came to his senses.

Elwin was unsure of what to do next when a voice whispered in his ear.

“Find her, you idiot!”

“Yeah, alright,” grumbled Elwin.

He stood up and began to walk away. His friends watched in awe, but he did his best to ignore them. He had somewhere much more important to be.

After a couple of minutes of searching, he found her sitting on a rock. She was bawling her eyes out. When he sat down next to her, she latched onto him.

Lefiya continued crying, and Elwin held her close. They would stay like that for a long time.

Chapter Text

The party stayed on Floor 34 for seven more days. On the third day, Bell finally woke up, and everyone breathed a little bit easier. Ryuu had taken over in his absence and ran everyone ragged to make sure they were all prepared to leave as soon as possible. Surprisingly, they were able to fulfill the original request of the expedition. They had killed so many monsters in the battle that there was an absolute avalanche of drop items to pick up and store. The only people who were excused from work were Elwin and Lefiya. The half-elf still seemed to be a bit of a mess, considering what happened, and Lefiya wasn't much better. For now, the two of them had not talked about what had transpired, but they did not leave each other's sight the entire week.

When Bell woke up, Ais took the role of his nurse. She put him up in a sitting position and helped give him food and water. Wiene was also there, having decided to wait and make sure he was ok. The other Xenos had already left to check on the situation deeper in the Dungeon. Soon after Bell came to consciousness, Wiene departed to follow Lyd and the rest. When the others offered to escort her away, she said that they would slow her down.

So, the little dragon gave big hugs to everyone, especially Bell and Haruhime, and made to leave. Before she departed, though, she ran up to Ais. With a wave of her hand, she asked the Sword Princess to bow. Ais bent low at the waist, wondering what was happening next. Wiene stretched out a hand and patted the first-class adventurer on the head.

"You're good! Take care of Bell for me!" said the vouivre.

Wiene stretched out her dragon wings and flew off to the depths of the Dungeon. Everyone else watched her go before returning to their tasks. They were worried, but they also had to have faith that she would be ok.

When Bell was awake, he tried to help where he could. When he saw that Elwin was alive, he launched himself at the half-elf and hugged him. He hung on tight and cried for over an hour. Afterwards, Welf explained what had transpired while he was asleep. Bell tried to mumble out some condolences to Lefiya, but she barely heard what was going on. Later, Elwin pulled her aside to explain.

The two weren't in a tent, either. Instead, they shared a sleeping bag outside. When the others asked him about it, Elwin replied that they weren't doing anything. Really, they both just needed someone right now. Neither of them wanted to sleep alone. So, the party held back on teasing and focused on healing instead.

After a week of rest, though, it was time to start heading back up. Things were decidedly uneventful for the return trip. They marched up through the Desert, past the swamp, and skipped through the Water Capital. The entire time, Ryuu lugged around the black sword that Udeaus had dropped. Even when it almost took her over a cliff, she still held on for dear life. When everyone asked her why she said that she wanted a new sword. This was followed by a pointed look at Welf. The smith sighed and shook his head, but he was smiling.

All total, the expedition ended up being fifteen days. That was only five more than what they had planned for. So, they didn't feel like they were all that behind schedule. They were not prepared for what they met on the surface, though.

"It's about time you got back!"

The second Elwin stepped into the sunlight, he was assaulted. He felt himself get pulled into a tight hug. But just like that, Riveria was pulling back and examining him. She checked his head, his clothes, and just about everywhere else for signs of injury.

"What took you so long?" asked the high elf.

Elwin looked away.

"Well, you know…."

Riveria started pulling on one of his pointy ears. "No, I don't. That's why I'm asking, smartass, now tell me why you were so late coming back up."

Elwin grimaced from the pain. "Just took a while to find everything we needed!" he said.

Riveria looked over the general state of the rest of the party. She took in their dishevelled appearances and torn clothing. She also noticed their total exhaustion. She let go of her little brother before placing her hands on her hips.

"Tea, tomorrow morning, come over and tell me what really happened," said the 'Nine Hells’. She looked over to the members of her Familia. "Unless I learn ahead of time from those two”.She started wagging a finger in his face. "If I hear about you doing anything stupid, I swear to the Goddess that I will chain you to my wrist so that I can keep an eye on you”.

With that tirade completed, she looked over to Bell.

"Finn and Loki said that they wanted to have a little party. A successful expedition requires a bit of celebration, after all." Her lips quirked “up in a small smile. "Also, Finn wants to stop by for lunch beforehand. Wouldn't say what it was about, just that it was something between Captains. He also said you could refuse."

Bell was quick to shake his head and wave his hands.

"Not at all!" said the young man, "I am honoured that he wants to have lunch! Should I go to him?"

Riveria's ponytail swished behind her.

"Yes, you can swing by with Elwin, actually. And then he'll take you wherever he wants to go." She beckoned for Ais and Lefiya. "You two, it's time we got home to make our report. Loki and everyone else are waiting." The three began to walk in the direction of Twilight Manor. Aiz waved goodbye to Bell while whispering that he still had a punishment to accept, and Lefiya gave a half-hearted wave to Elwin.

'My poor blossoms...how I wish...,' whispered the voice in Elwin's head.

The voice had been doing that all week. It had sat in his head and made comments about his actions, or sighing after Lefiya, constantly. Unfortunately, he still hadn't figured out who it was, and he was a little afraid that he was going crazy. The problem was that he couldn't figure out the difference. Would a voice in his head sound so tired and sarcastic? Besides, stranger things could be happening. He was confident that the whole issue of his resurrection had some lingering effects.

Slowly, the different groups split away. Cassandra and Daphne promised to make it for the party tomorrow while dragging away their portion of the expedition's goods. They had refrained from taking many magic stones and had instead focused on the herbs and drop items. There were many things that Nahza could use to make more items for the shop. Chigusa and Ouka also split off. Their portion contained a more significant collection of magic stones but also some metals on reserve. These were going to be new weapons made by Welf as part of their commission. Really, the high smith was giving them a significant discount, but it was also an investment. Those weapons would most likely save Welf's life one day.

Finally, Lili and Haruhime carried the largest packs, filled with magic stones of varying sizes and many many drop items. They were going to sell and convert all of these tomorrow, focusing on today just being to get home and relax. The girls talked about going for a nice long bath, and the guys chatted about an excellent homemade dinner with real food.

When they finally got through the front gates, they stopped because of a loud sound from down the street. All their heads turned towards the source. What they saw was a small dust cloud with black pigtails bearing down on them. Everyone took three steps back from Bell. As the boy looked around in confusion, his Goddess nailed him across the chest.

"You're back!"

Hestia held firm and then proceeded to be like Riveria. She checked over every inch of Bell to make sure he was ok, before moving to do the same with the rest of her Familia. One by one, as they made their way inside, Hestia looked them up and down. She commented about how they seemed to have grown while gone and proceeded to lay on the guilt for making her worry. When she saw Elwin, though, she didn't even bother with the inspection. Hestia looked into his eyes, and then she just wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close.

"I don't know what it is, but I'm always open to talk to, ok?"

Elwin returned the hug, burying his head in his Goddess's shoulder. The others started walking inside before another Goddess walked up to join them.

"Now wait just a minute, please," said Hephaestus. Nodding over in Hestia's direction, she said, "This one was at work with me, and then next thing I know, she's flying out the door. Apparently, one of our customers claimed that you all just came back."

Hestia then led the others inside while holding Elwin's hand. Welf stayed behind and scratched the back of his neck.

"Why don't you show me this impressive forge of yours?" asked the Goddess of smithing.

Welf turned as red as his hair before nodding.

Back inside the manor, Hestia watched her Familia gather in the entranceway. They all seemed a little confused about what to do next. Loki had warned her about this. Apparently, when a Familia went out for a long expedition where everyone was busy all the time, they sometimes forgot what to do when it was finished. Mainly, they had forgotten how to relax and take a break. Thankfully, Loki had also given some advice for once about what to do next.

"Ok!" Hestia clapped her hands together to get everyone's attention. "I want all of you to bring the loot into our storage area. We'll focus on sorting and selling tomorrow. Tonight, I want you to relax, unpack, and take a bath." She pointed out to the dining room. "I'll take care of dinner, we'll eat, and then I'll update everyone's statuses; that sound good?"

There were various sounds of affirmation. Lili then started to direct the others until Hestia pointed at Ryuu and Bell.

"I want you two with me. We have a debriefing to do, remember?"

Ryuu and Bell almost looked shocked at the reminder, but then they nodded. The three of them walked off, leaving the others to get to work.

"I can almost imagine Lady Hestia's reaction," said Otohime at one point. They had just brought the final bag in. "It was certainly more exciting than we had planned for."

Ura didn't respond. Ever since his decision to let Filvis die to save Elwin, he had been quietly stewing in a pit of self-loathing.

"Oi!" said Otohime. She grabbed him by the collar. "We all chose to save Elwin; it wasn't just you. It's not like any of us were trying to stand in the way. And we're going to live with it! Now, enough with the moping!"

All Urashima said in response was, "ok," before walking off in silence. Oto watched him go, struggling with how to comfort him. The others pointedly ignored the exchange before putting away their own packs. Then, the girls left to get the bath going, while Elwin went to find Ura and Welf.

The first one he went to look for was the smith. Apparently lost in thought, Elwin walked right through the door. He was greeted with the sight of a very embarrassed Goddess jumping backwards and Welf stumbling to the side. The young smith then reached out to steady himself and accidentally put his hand into a pot of hot coals.

"FUCKING SHIT!" screamed Welf.

"Sorry!" said Elwin.

He ran up to help the smith stand back up. Thankfully, Welf's status and skills stopped the worst of the burns. The smith grabbed a potion he kept for precisely these situations and started to gulp it down. Hephaestus stood in shock, face as red as her hair before she began to giggle. And then it just got louder and louder until she couldn't contain it anymore. Welf and Elwin watched her go.

Eventually, she noticed them staring and started to recompose herself. She fanned her hands in front of her face before speaking up again.

"I'm sorry about that!" said the Goddess, "I just never thought I would be caught out like that. Look at me; I'm no better than some young girl!"

The subsequent smile almost gave Welf a heart attack.

Hephaestus took a look outside and sighed.

"I think I need to get going. Unfortunately, there is a whole Familia that I need to look after."

She walked up to Welf and gave him a quick peck on the lips. Elwin's eyebrows nearly shot off his skull.

"We'll have to set up a dinner date next time, ok?" said Hephaestus, holding Welf's hands. When he nodded slowly, she left with a wave goodbye.

Elwin looked back at Welf and his dumbstruck expression.

"You are a very lucky man; you know that, right?"

Welf nodded, and the two of them went back to the house.

***

In the office, Hestia's eyes were popping out of her head.

"He what?"

Bell and Ryuu both looked off to the side.

"He came back, though…" mumbled Bell.

"But he died!" screamed Hestia.

***

"Oh, I'm guessing she just heard," said Elwin as he entered the bathhouse.

Ura and Welf nodded sagely as they took off their towels.

***

"But what else happened?" asked Hestia.

The two executives took the time to explain the entirety of the expedition, including everything that happened with Filvis and Lefiya. She hummed thoughtfully when she heard about the battle with Udaeus before asking Bell to leave the room for a minute.

"Take your shirt off, Ryuu," commanded the Goddess.

The elf turned a dark shade of red from her neck to her ears. She blinked once in confusion, her face a careful blank. When she didn't move, Hestia rolled her eyes and took Ryuu's hand. She dragged the Faeries Princess up and sat her down on a stool they kept in the office. The Goddess proceeded to lift off the elf's undershirt, while the elf did not completely understand what was going on.

It was only after Hestia pricked her finger that the pieces started to fall together. Then, Hestia took a piece of spare paper and flattened it out on Ryuu's back. Ryuu was about to slip her shirt back on when Hestia snatched it from her hands.

"Ok, so I had a bit of a feeling this could happen since it was similar to what Wallenwhatisit did, but I wanted to wait to confirm it." The Goddess's serious face morphed into a large smile. "Congratulations, Ryuu! You can now rank up to level six!"

Dumbly, Ryuu stared at the piece of paper.

Ryuu Leon:

Status:

Strength: E 501 Defense: F 455 Dexterity: E 595 Agility: D 601 Magic: E 503

Hunter: F

Abnormal Resistance: F

Magic Resistance: G

Swordsman: H

There it was, a single letter D in her status. She had barely crossed the line, but in only a year and a couple months, she had somehow qualified to make it to level six. She was so shocked by the possibilities that she barely heard what Hestia said next.

"Do you want to take it now or wait till all your stats are a bit higher?" asked the Goddess.

Ryuu whirled to look over, eyes wide. "Goddess Hestia, is that really an option we can afford to have? Sy-Freya is waiting for us; I need to get stronger as soon as possible!"

Hestia sighed and gave Ryuu a pat on the shoulder. The elf felt like she was being patronized too.

"Ryuu, even if everyone in this Familia got another level up at this second, we'd still be very far behind Freya. If we go over the natural course of adventuring, it'll be decades before we're strong enough to stand up to her, and that's counting that her Familia doesn't get any stronger on their own." Hestia shrugged. "In all honesty, if it wasn't for Loki Familia and Hephaestus Familia, we'd be dead in the water. So, if you want to wait, then this can be our little secret."

Ryuu looked at the paper, then back up at her Goddess. Slowly, she folded it and tucked it away in her pants pocket.

"I suppose I don't need to make the decision right now," said Ryuu.

Hestia nodded. Then she looked at Ryuu's back again before sealing the status. As the elf put her shirt back on, the Goddess crossed her arms deep in thought.

"Not to belittle your accomplishment or anything, but your rate of growth is quite remarkable, especially since you did it all outside of Orario. I mean, I know that you're a hard worker and all, but it seems a little farfetched to me," said Hestia.

Ryuu paused, contemplating the words of her Goddess. After mulling it over, she turned towards the door out.

"If I had to guess a reason…it probably has something to do with Bell. Liaris Freese might not be as broken as we thought." Ryuu shrugged. "Sometimes, the mysteries of falna can even surpass the knowledge of the Gods. Maybe I just got lucky or fought some exceptionally generous monsters. However it came to pass, it is now an option."

"I guess so," replied Hestia.

The paper in her hand scrunched up even more. Internally, she screamed. This was just one more thing to deal with. She turned to leave, but Ryuu grabbed her shoulder.

"Actually, Goddess Hestia, there's a bit of a situation that you should know about."

***

A short while later, Hestia and Ryuu entered the baths to try and clean up. They found the other girls already there, enjoying themselves in the steamy water. Mikoto especially was having a good time. With a sigh of contentment, she stretched out her arms, inadvertently flexing them. Years of hard work had chiselled the Black Crow's body, much like it had for many other top-level female adventurers. This was reflected in her musculature. As she moved around the bathhouse, all of her bulk was on display.

Which left a poor renard feeling absolutely light-headed as she stared after her childhood friend. It seemed that Mikoto forgot all her usual modesty and was drunk on the atmosphere of an authentic Far-Eastern Bath. She went to grab a bucket and rinse a bit, and Haruhime was left staring at her sturdy back and swaying hips.

Otohime and Lili noticed and shared a smirk with each other. As they watched, Lili looked over with a false look of astonishment.

“Miss Mikoto!” said the prum. "It seems like you missed a spot on your back!"

"Huh?"

Mikoto then tried to reach for said imaginary spot, which just ended up making her biceps more pronounced.

"Ahhh, Lady Haruhime," continued Oto, "why don't you help her scrub her back?"

The renard went as stiff as aboard.

"Oh…ok then."

Slowly, as if she was drunk and dizzy, Haruhime stumbled over to where Mikoto was. She grabbed a brush and started to scrub away. Mikoto released a sigh of contentment, the bristles helping to soothe her and ease the tension from her shoulders.

"Lady Haruhime, if you don't mind, could you move a bit slower, please?" asked the Black Crow, too lost in her own relaxation to care.

"O-of course," replied Haruhime, who slowly brought the brush lower and lower.

But too soon, it was over. Mikoto declared that she was nice and clean, and she started to get her things together to leave and get changed. Despite Hestia's protests, she said she wanted to help with dinner. Haruhime soon followed to begin her maidly duties.

Otohime frowned at the rest of the girls.

"Just how dense are the two of them?"

Hestia spread her arms before replying, "You have to understand, they both still think that the other one is in love with someone else. Haruhime still thinks Mikoto is in love with her former God, Takemikazuchi, meanwhile Mikoto thinks Haruhime is in love with Bell."

Otohime's face scrunched up in confusion.

"Haruhime was in love with Bell?" She mulled the thought over as if considering it. "I mean…I guess so? They wouldn't be the worst option…but I think she'd be cuter with Mikoto." The former princess shrugged. "But hey, to each their own."

Lili nodded along. "Lili believes that it started because Master Bell saved Lady Haruhime's life. Such a situation created romantic feelings and a sense of obligation." The prum held up a single finger. "However, despite most likely still loving Master Bell in the platonic sense, she realized that her feelings would be unreturned." She held up a second finger. "Secondly, she and Miss Mikoto were separated for almost a year for travelling and training. In their time apart, the two of them began to realize how much one meant for the other." Lili also shrugged. "What happens next, though, is up to the two of them. Lili has more important things to focus on."

The rest agreed and finished up their baths. Then, they had dinner and went on to get their status updates. Altogether, it was a quiet evening for once, and nobody cared.

***

Meanwhile, with Loki Familia…

"He what?" screeched Riveria.

Across the Twilight Manor and many surrounding buildings, people awoke and thought it was because of screaming cats.

"Elwin died," explained Ais in her most monotone voice. "And then he came back. Filvis, who was a Xenos, traded her life for his."

Riveria turned towards the door, ready to make off for Hearth Manor. Unfortunately, Gareth stepped in her way. When Riveria opened her mouth to protest, the dwarf nodded to where Lefiya was sitting on the couch. The little elf had barely squeaked out a word all night and was now looking so droopy she just might collapse in on herself.

"The lad's coming by tomorrow anyway Riveria, wait for him then. But right now, the little lass needs our help. Think you can do it?" asked Gareth.

Riveria nodded with a sigh. She glared over at Finn to make the message clear; they would be having words later. Then, she sat down next to Lefiya and pulled her in tight. Her apprentice returned the hug, and with a shaky breath, Lefiya let herself pass out.

***

The next day, the various members of Hestia Familia sat down at breakfast.

"So then, Lady Haruhime and Miss Mikoto will stay home to take care of things," began Lili. "Mister Welf will be at the forge, working on equipment repairs and requests, while Mister Urashima and Lady Otohime sell everything we found in the Dungeon. Lili will be reporting to the Guild and turning in our magic stones with Miss Ryuu, and Master Bell and Mister Elwin will be heading over to the Twilight Manor to talk with Mister Finn and Lady Riveria." The prum looked around the table. "Does everyone understand their tasks?"

The others nodded and made to begin their day when Goddess Hestia raised her gloved hand.

"There's something I want to say first," said the itty-bitty Goddess. "Bell, Ryuu told me about what happened during the expedition about your aunt. She figured that if everyone else knew, then I should too." As Bell shrunk into his seat, Hestia looked to the Heavens and rolled her eyes. "You're not in trouble, Bell. I'm not going to lie, I don't know much about the Alfia lady, but I also don't really care." She walked over to her first child and ruffled his hair. "Your name is Bell Cranel, Captain of Hestia Familia. If that's still true, then you're still a member of my Familia, which means that I will always care about you." Hestia snorted.

"Besides, I don't think you could have an evil bone in your body if you tried." She watched Bell relax and then turned to look at the rest of the Familia. "And the rest of you!" She levelled an accusatory finger. "I get it, the news was shocking, and you didn't like that he kept a secret. That's fine, but I want you all to remember how many secrets you've all kept." The rest of the Familia had the decency to look away. "Bell's aunt was responsible for something bad. So were most of Welf's ancestors. Alfia killed people, and so did Ryuu. You got upset, that's fine. Now, get over it." She turned her finger to the outside. "If we can't trust each other, we're all good as dead anyway. And again, does anyone really think that Bell would do anything nefarious?"

Those who had harboured feelings of doubt blushed. They remembered who their Captain was, a massive fool for heroic tales. Bell was too innocent to even consider it. There was a small round of apologies, and Bell apologized for hiding his secret, and then everyone stood up. Welf left for the forge, Otohime and Urashima shouldered the sack of things to sell, and the rest started to file away. Haruhime and Mikoto bustled about to take away the dirty dishes, working in perfect tandem, and Elwin and Bell left for the Twilight Manor.

When they got there, they found Riveria and Finn already waiting for them. Elwin was pulled in for another tight hug. After Riveria let go, she turned to look at Bell, and he remembered her threat before the expedition. He braced himself for the scolding of a lifetime but was met with a bowed head. The members of Loki Familia guarding the gate, who both just happened to be elves, stood in absolute shock. When Riveria lifted her head, she had a smile on her face.

"He came back. You helped bring him back," said Riveria. "Thank you, Bell Cranel; I am in your debt."

Finn just chuckled at the collected bemused expressions. He looked down to his thumb and then back to his fellow Captain.

"I believe that is our cue to go," said the prum. "Come, let us go for a walk."

Finn patted Bell on the back as they left. Elwin watched them go and then turned back to his big sister. He found her staring at him. Her gaze was intense but also broken. She beckoned with her head that they go inside. They sat down in their usual spot in the courtyard, and Riveria started to pour some tea. The only problem was that her hands were shaking so bad that it splattered everywhere.

"Hey, why don't you let me get that, huh?" said Elwin. Although his movements weren't as elegant as Riveria's could have been, it got the job done.

When he set the pot back done, Riveria whispered, "I'm so sorry."

The half-elf tried for a smile. "Hey now, it's not your fault."

Riveria shook her head. "Still, though, I knew something was wrong, I felt it in my gut, and I did nothing. I just…sat here…." There was a sudden breaking sound as her hand curled around her cup too tightly. She looked down in surprise. With a deft movement, she placed the cracked teacup down and wiped up what had spilled. She talked as she worked.

"I'm supposed to be your big sister. I'm supposed to protect you and…."

She trailed off, unsure of what to say.

Elwin chuckled as he helped. While he wiped the tabletop down, he replied, "And you have your own responsibilities. You're the Vice-Captain of one of the greatest Familia in Orario. Not to mention, from what I understand, you're basically everyone's mom." When he finished, he took one of her hands. "This isn't going to be a normal brother-sister relationship; we both have too many responsibilities and obligations for that. So, this is just going to have to be one of those things we learn to live with, yeah?"

Riveria sighed but nodded anyway.

"As much as I want to force you to convert to Loki Familia, that isn't going to happen, right?"

Elwin shook his head.

"And I'm guessing you won't accept an invitation to the illustrious Hestia Familia?"

He waggled his eyebrows for dramatic effect, which earned him a snort of laughter. They sat in companionable silence after that and talked about small things. Eventually, Riveria asked him how his status was doing, and his face lit up like a thousand stars.

"I got a rank up!" declared Elwin.

He pulled out his status sheet and passed it along. Riveria skimmed over the contents, verifying his claim, while the half-elf explained.

"Apparently, coming back from the dead like that counts as a feat. And my magic stat had passed into D. Goddess Hestia offered to let me hold off, but I chose not to." He shrugged. "Not like I'm training for firepower anyway; I've always been a more versatile mage than anything else."

Riveria smiled at his child-like excitement.

"True enough." She looked back at the piece of paper. She squinted as she reached the bottom half. "I'm sorry but, what in the world are these?"

She pointed to his two new skills:

Reborn: The user cannot be turned away by fear-inducing effects and is impervious to illusions and hallucinations.

Second Soul: The user is a container for another.

Elwin shrugged. "The first seems simple enough, but even Hestia can't begin to guess at what the second one means."

'Liar,' replied the voice in his head.

Elwin grit his teeth, unhappy at concealing the truth. In front of him, an image of an elf with black hair and red eyes materialized.

'I'm part of you now,' said ghost Filvis.

'Yeah, but if I told people that, they'd think I was crazy,' replied Elwin in his thoughts.

The spectral image rolled her eyes before dissipating.

'You may do as you wish as I do not have a say in this,' said Filvis one more time before going silent.

As far as Elwin knew, she could not interact with anything and only existed for him. He figured it was because he quite literally carried a piece of her inside of him now. He had two souls in his body or, at the very least, a remnant of Filvis's soul.

"Well, thankfully," interrupted Riveria, pulling him back to the present, "The first appears to be quite useful."

She handed back the paper, and the two continued on their teatime. As they caught up, though, they saw a shadow in the archway. Elwin had trouble seeing and tried to adjust his glasses, but Riveria only sighed.

"You might as well join us, Lefiya," called Riveria.

There was a small 'eep!' sound before the little elf walked out to the table. She took a seat, glancing over occasionally at Elwin. The two siblings tried to draw her into the conversation, but all her responses ended up being one word. After an hour of awkward conversation, she congratulated Elwin on his level up before excusing herself. Elwin frowned as she left, but Riveria patted him on the shoulder.

"I'm sure she's more than a little confused and in mourning. Give her some time," said Riveria.

Elwin nodded.

***

Meanwhile, Finn had taken Bell to a small restaurant. The two sat down, and the Braver began asking questions. None of them were very invasive; they were mainly just aimed at trying to get Bell to relax. They ate their food and started talking about what happened on the expedition. Finally, Bell asked the question that had been on his mind all morning.

"Finn, why did you invite me out here?" asked Bell.

Finn gave him a tired smile before pouring them both a glass.

"I remember my first expedition as Familia Captain. I nearly shit myself with worry and felt like I was all alone," explained the Braver. "It took a while before Riveria and Gareth helped me get my head out of my ass." He handed a cup over to Bell. "What I'm trying to say is, I get it. Especially after hearing about Elwin and Filvis. I know that it couldn't have been easy." They clinked their glasses. "I'm here, Bell, and I'm telling you not to isolate yourself. It doesn't need to be lonely up at the top."

Bell blinked once. And then he smiled as his shoulder blades dropped. Hearing those words from someone outside his Familia, who actually seemed to understand what was going on, was exactly what he needed.

"Also," began Finn. "I may or may not have dragged out some information about your parentage from Ais." And Bell immediately tensed up. In return, Finn raised both his hands in surrender. "Far be it from me to judge anything like that. Actually, I was hoping that you'd accept MY apology."

And now Bell was confused.

"Apology for what?"

Finn tilted his head, a bitter smile gracing his lips.

"If your aunt was Alfia, then your mother was in Hera Familia. Which means your father was in Zeus or Hera Familia as well. Both of which, I played a very substantial hand in running out of Orario. I have to say, I'd be angry if I was you," explained the hero of the prums.

Bell looked down at the table. He started to draw circles with the spilled drinks of former patrons. His mind was a swirl of thoughts, but it eventually settled onto one constant.

"What's happened has happened, and you've already saved the life of me and my Familia many times." Slowly, he reached out a hand. "Maybe you chased out my parents; maybe they were already dead after fighting the One-Eyed Black Dragon." He looked Finn in the eye. "But I want to move past that, to save the people that are still here."

Finn began laughing as he took Bell's hand.

"I'll agree to that!"

The two had a much more relaxed conversation after that. Afterwards, Finn promised that he would be there for the post-expedition party happening that night, and Bell smiled in response. The two parted ways, feeling much better about each other.

***

When the evening finally arrived, things had begun to lighten up. Due to their position in the expedition, Lefiya and Ais both spent much time with the rest of their party. The other members of Loki Familia were there too, but they mostly left the returning adventurers alone. There was much singing, drinking, eating, and dancing, but the most unforgettable moment happened out front for Bell.

The time was unreasonably late, but the celebration showed no signs of slowing down. In an effort to catch his breath, Bell had stepped outside to enjoy the cool evening air. Little did he know, he had been followed.

"Bell," said Ais, walking up to stand beside him.

The boy acknowledged her existence with a nod and a smile. Thankfully, the Sword Princess had not had a single drink the entire time, as she was still forbidden from doing so. Which also meant that she was the soberest person there.

"I think I figured out your punishment for the Ryuu kisses," continued Ais.

A cold sweat dripped down Bell's back. Something inside him said to run away, but he knew that Ais would just catch up to him. He screwed his eyes shut and prayed that whatever it was, it would be painless. To his great surprise, though, there was no pain. In fact, the only thing he felt was a sudden wet warmth on his cheek. His eyes snapped open, and he found Ais pulling away. The deadly adventurer was a deep crimson red, with her eyes trained on the ground.

"There, you've been punished," said Ais. She quickly turned on her heel and walked back inside.

Bell raised a hand to touch his cheek and felt himself smile. His grin threatened to tear his face in half. He walked back inside with a spring to his step.

***

The next morning, Mikoto woke up with a head full of lead. Her tongue sat heavy in her mouth, and her scalp was unbearably itchy. She tried to move an arm but found that it had been trapped.

Eh?

She opened her eyes to find Haruhime's body pressed against her chest. The renard had a very dainty snore that sent Mikoto's heart aflutter. And it just so happened that Mikoto's arm was trapped underneath the very same body she was cuddling with.

Mikoto brought up her other arm, which had been wrapped around Haruhime's midsection, and began to scratch away at her head. As she did so, she tried to remember what had happened the previous night. She brought her hand down to rub her neck and realized that the side of it was incredibly tender as if someone had bit it.

EH??

Finally, Mikoto worked to free her trapped arm and start her day. She sat up, and her blanket fell away. A cool breeze sent a shiver through her body. It was at that moment she realized she was stark naked. And so was Haruhime.

EEEHHHH?!?!?!?

Suddenly, images began to replay themselves in Mikoto's mind. She remembered chaste, drunken kisses. She remembered her hands roving this way and that, finally resting on Haruhime's bottom. The renard had then hooked her legs…

Mikoto broke down then and promptly fled the scene. The sleeping Fox Princess was none the wiser of what had just happened. She snored on in ignorant bliss.

Chapter Text

Haruhime woke up and nearly had a heart attack at her dishevelled appearance. She had no memories of the night before, just an overall pleasant feeling. When she found the outfit she had worn to the party, lying in a heap on the side, she saw that it was sticky and covered in beer.

'Oh, Mikoto must have helped get this off, so I slept well,' thought Haruhime. The idea made her feel warm and fuzzy, as thoughts of Mikoto often did these days.

The renard put on a new outfit, a sleeveless purple dress that went down to her ankles, and began tidying up her shared room. At the sight of her futon pulled closer to Mikoto's, she frowned but left it alone. She liked the idea of the two sleeping right next to each other. After their room was sufficiently clean, she left for the kitchens to help prepare breakfast.

When she walked in, Haruhime found Mikoto already hard at work making pancakes. She put on an apron and started to help. During her travels, Haruhime had worked hard to get better at all household chores and activities. When they stayed at inns for any prolonged period of time, she would work part-time to pay for room and board. If they lived with a host family, she would take the time to help clean the house before they left. All so that she could find any way to support her Familia.

"Mikoto," said Haruhime. She took note of how her dear friend seemed to jump at her name. "I have finished mixing a second batch of batter. Shall I go set the table?"

Slowly, in a jerky fashion, Mikoto nodded her head. Her hair, which was pulled into a ponytail this time, bounced erratically behind her. Haruhime tilted her head in concern but went to set the table anyway. When she finished, she helped pour everyone's preferred morning drinks. Then, she and Mikoto waited for the rest of the Familia to file in.

The only problem was, there were extra guests. When Elwin came down, Lady Riveria walked in behind him. Haruhime also had a panic attack. Thankfully, the high elf was very gracious and proceeded to brew her own pot of tea. When Elwin almost forced her to sit down for breakfast, she happily agreed. And then Lefiya walked into the dining room as red as a beet. Both members of Loki Familia were wearing the same outfits that they had last night.

The next down was Urashima Taro. There was one problem, though…

"Has anyone seen my arms?"

As if for emphasis, the young man wiggled the stumps of his shoulders. His eyes looked bleary, and he also seemed quite frustrated with the situation. He was also not wearing a shirt since he could not put one on. How he had slipped on his pants was a testament to his skill.

"Who in this house, right now, could get away with stealing and hiding your arms?" replied Elwin.

The bodyguard sighed before stomping away.

"OTOHIME!!!"

"Calm down," replied the Dragon Princess. She walked in from the garden doors.

"Did you wake up outside?" asked Elwin.

Otohime nodded. Tucked into her belt were Urashima's arms. And again, the bodyguard sighed. He sat in a chair, and Otohime pulled one up to sit in front of him. She started helping reattach his prosthetics, without looking him in the eye.

"I don't suppose you remember why you stole my arms?" asked Urashima.

Otohime didn't respond, but she thought, 'Probably to force you to come and talk to me.'

Riveria watched on with an amused expression.

"This reminds me of Loki Familia," said the high elf to Lefiya.

The little elf nodded, a tiny smile gracing her lips. Elwin rolled his eyes but was internally happy about the development. Any emotion was better than no emotion.

'I concur,' commented Filvis. She manifested for a brief second to look lovingly at Lefiya. She tried to run her ethereal hand down the elf's cheek, but it passed through. A spasm of pain crossed her face, and then she vanished back into Elwin's subconscious.

Hestia was the next one down, trailed by Lili. The two of them seemed to be handling their hangovers better than the rest. They were quick to help out with final meal preparations. At one point, Hestia turned to Riveria.

"I assume Wallenwhatisit got her way?" asked the Goddess.

Riveria grinned while she nodded. The high elf gave a slight chuckle and brought her tea to her lips. She took a dainty sip with her eyes closed. When she reopened them, she found the assembled Familia members staring at her with wide eyes. In response, she rolled her own.

"It's nothing like that. Ais just got drunk by accident and then demanded that she be allowed to," Riveria coughed, "bring her pet bunny home."

***

In the Twilight Manor, in the Sword Princess's room, cowering on the floor, was Bell Cranel. Somehow, Ais had accidentally drunk someone's wine. What followed was a series of unfortunate events where Ais had held him hostage, with everyone else just trying to keep her calm. Mama Mia almost lost it but was contained when Loki and Hestia agreed to let Ais leave with Bell. No one had asked for his opinion on the matter.

Now, he had quietly squirmed his way onto the floor after Ais fell asleep. She had whimpered and tried to reach out for him, but Bell was still a little too scared to cuddle. She was liable to crack his ribs with her level six strength. So, Bell slipped away and spent the night on the floor in total panic.

Eventually, though, Ais woke up. With her warrior instincts, she knew that something was wrong. She grabbed Desperate from her bedside table and jumped into the corner.

"AHH!" screamed Bell.

"Bell? What are you doing here?"

Ais trailed off and looked around. When she realized that she was in her room, she felt her face heat up for some strange reason. She had never considered it before, but for some reason, the idea of Bell being in her room as she just woke up left her…embarrassed? Was that the proper word?

Bell sighed at her cluelessness but began explaining the situation.

***

Lili was fuming. Everyone else settled down for breakfast, but the prum realized they were still missing a couple of members. That's when Ryuu walked down the stairs. Behind her came Helun, wearing one of Ryuu's shirts. The elf then saw that Lady Riveria was sitting at the table and almost buckled at the knees. Thankfully, Helun caught her.

"Come on, why don't we sit down?" asked the waitress. Ryuu took a chair. When Helun was tentatively offered a seat, she shook her head. "I have to get back for work, actually. If I don't show up, Mia is likely to wallop me over the head."

The gray-haired woman pressed a kiss to Ryuu's forehead before leaving. Everyone else took a second to stare at their Vice-Captain. Riveria kept sipping her tea quietly and looked over out of the corner of her eye. Ryuu had sunk so low, she felt like she was about to fall out of her seat.

"You know what?" called Hestia, grabbing the attention. "Why don't we focus on breakfast right now?" She looked around the table. "Where's Welf?"

***

Slowly, the smith came into the world of the waking. He realized something was off because of how comfortable he was. He groggily patted to the side and found that he was in a well-made bed. It was not particularly fancy but sturdy in all the right ways. He was also comfortable because of the Goddess sleeping on his chest. Hephaestus was sound asleep, snoring like a giant, and not wearing her eye patch. Internally, Welf had a minor freak out. It was a minute later, though, that he realized his pants were still on. As was Hephaestus's shirt. He relaxed a bit, thankful that they had just fallen asleep together.

Welf remembered bits and pieces of the night before, but he was a little unclear on some of the details. He remembered having a beer and then a drinking contest with Ouka. And then that monster dwarf Gareth jumped in. And after that, there was a large blank spot. His next memory was his view of a bucket outside. The smith was pretty sure that he lost his lunch and dinner there. Thankfully, that's when Hephaestus entered the picture. She had held his hair and rubbed his back. And then things got a little fuzzy for Welf, but only because he had spent most of the night staring at his former Goddess. He remembered the two of them leaving at one point.

Welf was pulled from his reverie as Hephaestus slowly started to wake up. She blinked a couple times before realizing that Welf was there too.

"Good morning," she said groggily, a smile lighting up her features.

Welf ran his hand through her hair.

"Right back at you."

The Goddess picked herself up, so she was on her knees on the bed. She stretched her arms and then stopped to consider something. Welf shifted so that he was in more of a sitting position.

"Something on your mind?" asked the smith.

Hephaestus blushed and looked away.

"I was just thinking. This is the first time I've woken up in a while where I haven't scrambled to cover my face," she replied.

Welf reached up to move a couple locks of hair from her face.

"I'm happy for you."

The two slowly got out of bed. As they moved around, they heard someone knocking at the door. Without waiting for a response, Tsubaki marched in with her usual bluster.

"Good morning, love birds! I'm going to recommend that you get on your way, Welf, before the rest of our Familia realize what's going on." Tsubaki planted her hands on her hips as she turned to her Goddess. "And don't forget how much work you still have to do. I don't want you slacking off now and then daydreaming about your boyfriend."

The two sighed, their blissful morning ruined. Welf strapped on his boots and pressed a small kiss to Hephaestus's cheek. As he began to walk away, he felt lighter than air. There was a song in his heart and a pep in his step. He even began to hum as he walked home. How lucky of a man was he?

***

Back at the breakfast table, everyone had begun to dig into their preferred meals. As she ate, though, Haruhime scrunched up her nose.

"What's wrong, Haruhime?" asked Hestia.

"It's the strangest thing. I know the pancakes to be quite sweet, but there's this lingering taste of salt in my mouth," replied the renard.

Mikoto stiffened, more memories flooding her brain from the night before. In particular, she remembered lying on her back. Haruhime had then parted Mikoto's legs and stuck out her tongue….

"I must be going!" declared Mikoto as she stood at the table.

Her chair went flying backwards from the force of it. As she gathered up her plate and brought it to the kitchen, she ignored the pointed looks she got. The Black Crow then snuck out through a window, eager to escape into the town.

At the table, everyone looked on in confusion.

"What's wrong with her?" asked Lili.

Otohime nodded. "I thought she would be happier, considering what I heard last night." The Dragon Princess turned her gaze over to Haruhime. "I'm happy for you two, though."

Haruhime tilted her head. "I don't understand. What are you happy for, Lady Otohime?"

Otohime frowned. "You two finally getting together. I mean, we are neighbours, so I did hear her shouting your name. And it didn't seem like it was in pain."

Everyone watched as things began to click in Haruhime's mind. The first thing that happened was that she smiled, and it stretched from ear to ear. Her tail swished behind her so fast it might catch on fire. But then she turned red, from the soles of her feet to the tips of her ears. She tried to hide her face and cover her body.

"Excuse me! I must be going!"

She then scurried off to her room.

"I believe that is our cue to return home as well," added Riveria.

The high elf stood up and gestured for Lefiya to follow. She ruffled her little brother's hair as she passed. Lefiya stopped in front of Elwin. She reached down to grab his hands with her own while looking down at the floor.

"Talk soon?" was all she said.

Elwin smiled and nodded.

The two members of Loki Familia left then. After they did, Hestia turned back to Otohime. She pointed a fork at the Far Eastern Adventurer.

"Ok, spill you. What did you hear last night?"

"Well," began Otohime. "I came back from the bar, alone." This was punctuated with a glare at Urashima. The bodyguard flinched back from its intensity. "And began to head back to my room. It was then that I heard…moaning coming from Mikoto and Haruhime's shared room. Deciding to wait them out, I left." And now, she smirked at her bodyguard. "That was when I got bored and stole your arms."

"Why not sleep in one of the spare rooms next to mine?" asked Ryuu.

Otohime levelled another look at the elven warrior.

"Again, I didn't want to be kept up by the moaning."

Ryuu blinked and then started to play with her food.

Otohime looked back to Hestia and shrugged.

"After that, I was so tired I just decided to sleep outside, near Ura's flowers."

"Why not just come to my room?" asked Ura.

"Figure that out on your own," replied Otohime brusquely.

In the awkward silence that followed, everyone avoided looking at the two supposedly inseparable adventurers. Urashima almost reached out to comfort her but pulled back when she glared at him. A little after that, Hestia coughed into her fist.

"Well then, I don't think we'll be getting much done today. Or for the next week. How about we all take some time off, yeah?"

Everyone nodded and began to take their plates in. Urashima tried to grab Oto's, but she moved out of his way. Unused to the cold shoulder, the bodyguard followed behind her like a kicked puppy. The others watched before going their separate ways.

When the dishes were done, Hestia went off looking for their foxy maid. She didn't find her in her room but in a dusty hallway, trying to sweep. Haruhime was not doing a very good job, though.

"Everything alright?" asked Hestia.

Haruhime shook her head.

"I am happy that Mikoto reciprocates my feelings, even if only drunk, but why did she run away? Am I truly so dirty?"

Hestia sighed. "I don't think it has anything to do with that. I think Mikoto's just a little confused and working through her feelings." Haruhime tilted her head. "When did you know that you like guys and girls, Haruhime?"

The renard blushed but did not deny the fact.

"I believe it was when I entered the Pleasure District for the first time. There were so many…erotic situations involving other women, it was hard not to realize."

Hestia nodded. "Makes sense. You were in a highly sexual atmosphere; therefore, you explored your emotions and reactions. A lot of that place was bad for you, but you still got a chance to figure that kind of stuff out."

Hestia didn't continue. Instead, she watched Haruhime come to her own conclusions. The renard slowly stilled as she put her thoughts together. After a minute of contemplation, she faced the Goddess.

"Mikoto never had that opportunity. She grew up an orphan and then an adventurer," said Haruhime.

Hestia nodded. "She might be scared and confused." Hestia reached out to grab Haruhime's hands. "Whatever decision she reaches, though, I'm sure she still loves you very deeply."

Haruhime nodded and looked down at her broom. Then, she looked up at her Goddess. Hestia smiled and reached out. She then took a broomstick and started sweeping.

"Thank you, Goddess Hestia!" cried Haruhime.

The renard took off running after that. She had someone very important to find and talk to.

***

In the Twilight Manor, Bell put his clothes back on and made his way out. Ais said that he could stay for breakfast, but he thought that it would be best to head home for now. As he left, he fumbled his way through the building. Bell didn't exactly know the layout of the Twilight Manor and eventually got lost. It was while he was looking around that he ran headfirst into another adventurer.

"I'm so sorry!" said Bell.

"No! It's my fault!" replied the other adventurer.

When Bell looked at him, he found himself face to face with Raul. The High Novice had a panicked expression and had just left another room. One that was not his own.

"Oh, Raul! I don't remember saying you could go!"

Anakitty, without thinking, draped her arms around Raul's shoulders. She then started to pepper kisses along his neck while running her hands down his chest.

She whispered into his ear, "I'm not done playing with you yet."

"Aki! Look! It's Bell Cranel!"

The Catgirl stopped her seductions and finally looked up. She then looked down and realized she was in lacy underwear and a very thin nightgown. She shoved Raul away and jumped back inside her room. When the door slammed shut, Raul sighed and looked back at Bell.

"Wanna get some breakfast?"

Bell felt bad, so he agreed to the breakfast. However, they didn't stay in the Twilight Manor. Instead, Raul took him to a café and bought some coffee. Bell mainly had stayed away from caffeine but had indulged occasionally over his year away. He enjoyed it when he could and reaped whatever benefits were possible. The March Hare added a scone to his order while Raul got tea and a muffin.

"I, um, I'm sorry about earlier," said Bell.

Raul turned a light shade of pink but replied, "It's no problem. I'm not going to lie; I was already pretty worn out."

It took them both five seconds to understand what Raul had just said. They decided to move past that as fast as possible.

"So! How was it after the party?! I know you got pulled away," said Raul.

Bell blushed even harder.

"It was strange. I hope you're ok with me being honest," replied Bell. Raul gestured for him to continue. "Ais is still…Ais, and I'm still not really sure how to feel. We've gotten a lot better, but I just don't…." Bell grabbed his head. "Why is this so difficult?"

Raul nodded sagely.

"If love was simple, all the bards and poets would be out of a job." Raul stopped to scratch the back of his neck. "If you don't mind…I have something to say."

Bell looked back at Raul. He considered it, and he soon realized…Raul was the only person he knew who was in a relationship. Everyone else was still just starting or dancing around each other. If he wanted to learn how to use a sword, he'd find someone with experience sssooooo…

"Please, give me your wisdom!" responded Bell.

Raul's face took on a panicked expression, and his hands rose up in surrender.

"It's nothing serious! Just some advice," replied the high novice. He gathered himself, coughed into his hand, and said, "Just, don't stand in the way of your own happiness, ok? I can take a guess about why you're hesitant with Miss Ais, but if you want to forgive her, you can." He looked out the window. "Trust me, when it comes to standing in your own way, nobody gets that more than me. I always held myself back, convinced someone else could do it better." His features softened. "I didn't ask Aki out because I thought someone else could make her happier. When I finally talked to her and told her what I thought, she called me an idiot." He turned back to Bell, and the young adventurer felt a deep calm throughout his body at Raul's gaze. "Guys like you and me, who only trust in our weakness, we're our own worst enemy, and we have to stop that."

The two men then spent a pleasant morning. Bell was determined to soak up as much experience as possible from his more knowledgeable senior.

***

Out in the streets of Orario, Mikoto was wandering around the boulevards. Her thoughts were a swirl of confusion, and she felt more lost than ever before. Of course, Mikoto knew that she had been thinking about Haruhime 'that' way, but it was always subconsciously. She had never considered that she might be attracted to both genders. If she was honest, she liked the idea of spending as much time as possible with Haruhime. The only problem was…

Mikoto was so lost in her thoughts that her feet went into autopilot. She turned down alleyways, walked upstairs, and finally came to a set of Far-Eastern-style doors. Mikoto had brought herself back to the Takemikazuchi Familia household. As she stood outside, debating whether or not to go in, the sliding door opened. Ouka stood in the doorframe, his large shoulders blocking her view inside. He smiled at her before stepping aside.

"Chigusa said you might drop by," said her former Captain.

Mikoto walked inside, confused, and found her childhood friend pouring out some tea. Lord Takemikazuchi was there as well. He smiled when he saw her and beckoned her inside.

"Come, join us for tea, Mikoto," said Takemikazuchi. He gave her a wry grin. "I don't suppose you brought young Haruhime with you?"

Mikoto felt her brain fry.

"Lord Takemikazuchi! What are you talking about!"

Her father and former God laughed.

"Come now! Don't you remember who found you two starting to go at it right beside the Hostess? And who directed you to go home?"

Mikoto was ready to just keel over and die at that point. She had vague memories of her tongue down Haruhime's throat and then a strange figure telling her to wait until they got home. The two of them drunkenly nodded before they walked off into the night, unable to keep their hands to themselves.

Takemikazuchi studied Mikoto's face and put down his tea. He rubbed his chin in thought before speaking again.

"Based on your reaction, I'd say that things didn't go all that well?"

Mikoto shook her head. "Not at all! It was…quite pleasant…but I do not. That is, I am not sure." The Black Crow struggled to put into words what her heart was screaming. "I have just never considered Lady Haruhime, or any woman, in that way."

Takemikazuchi nodded thoughtfully.

"Yes, I suppose that would be a bit of a surprise to wake up to." Takemikazuchi placed his hands on his knees before turning to his daughter. "Mikoto, I can only speak to you as a Deity, but please do not shut these feelings away. They must be scary, downright terrifying even, but they can also be wonderful. Chase your dreams and your happiness." He smiled. "You mortals live and die in an instant to me, but that just makes your ability to love even more splendid. Life is short, do not waste it." Takemikazuchi shrugged. "But these are also just the words of lowly God." He reached out and patted her on the head. "No matter what path you choose, though, you will always be my daughter. Whatever decision you make, I will stand at your side."

These words were too much. Mikoto launched herself at her adoptive father and wrapped her arms around him. She buried her head into the crook of his shoulder and let herself cry.

***

“Otohime!” called out Ura again.

“What?” asked the former princess.

She was hard at work deweeding and fixing up the garden. There were notable imprints left from her night out. So, she did her part at fixing what she had broken.

“I would like to understand why you seem so intent on ignoring me right now,” replied Urashima.

Otohime flinched. She looked back at him and tried for a smile.

“Oh, well that’s just silly old me, you know? You just did something to upset me, so I’m going to hold it against you, ok?” She turned back to the gardening, her body practically vibrating. “That’s all. You may go.”

Urashima knelt down next to her.

“If I remember correctly, a stubborn Princess sat at my bedside for months.” He began to work on his cultivation. “No matter what others told her.”

That seemed to calm Otohime down. She smiled at him.

“Yeah, ok.” She pouted. “But I’m still angry at you!”

Urashima rolled his eyes.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

***

Haruhime peered up and down the many side streets. She did not know where she would find Mikoto, so she had to try everywhere. At one point, she had wandered into Daedalus Street but had gotten horribly lost within the labyrinth.

"You idiot little fox girl!"

Haruhime was startled as she looked up. Over on one of the rooftops, Aisha Belka looked down at her. The renard allowed herself a smile as she waved up.

"Miss Aisha! Please, could you help me get out?"

The Amazon rolled her eyes but hopped down anyway. She started walking down a particular alleyway, her waist-length hair swaying behind her.

"This way! And try to keep up!"

Haruhime took off behind her, eager to follow as fast as possible.

"What are you even doing out here?" asked Aisha.

"Oh…well, I was searching for Mikoto," replied the renard.

"Ahhh, so I see you made your move, then?"

Haruhime's eyes popped out of her head.

"How in the world do you know about that?"

Aisha looked back, her eyes narrow. Then, she burst out laughing. Haruhime stopped walking to give her a minute. Which then became five. Eventually, the amazon composed herself. She walked up and ruffled Haruhime's hair.

"Look at you getting all drunk and brave." The amazon bent low to look her little sister in the eye. "I know because you told me that was your drunken plan. To confess your love. You said that seeing the Xenos girl die made you realize that you wanted to declare your love then and there." She tapped Haruhime on the forehead. "You also asked me for advice."

And again, the fog lifted from Haruhime's mind. The night started to come back to her…

***

Last Night…

"Lady Haruhime, where did you go?" asked Mikoto, her cheeks rosy red.

Haruhime giggled and draped herself over top of her crush.

"I was just talking to Aisha and getting some advice."

"Advice about what?" Mikoto leaned in.

"To tell my crush how I feel about them," responded Haruhime.

Like a sack crushed beneath a rock, Mikoto deflated. Her shoulders dropped, and she seemed to frown. She began to turn away, eager to hide her oncoming drunken tears.

"Well, good luck then. Bell is a lucky man indeed."

Mikoto started to stumble away, almost slipping on the wet floor, when she felt someone grab her shoulder. She turned to find Haruhime's finger an inch away from her nose.

"Who said it was Bell?" asked Haruhime, leaning in close.

Mikoto frowned and tilted her head in thought. There was no one else she could think of…perhaps that werewolf? He seemed to have frequent interactions with Haruhime?

At Mikoto's adorably confused face, Haruhime sighed. She brought her hands to cup Mikoto's face. The level four adventurer stilled, like a piece of prey. The feeling of power made Haruhime shiver; she was done waiting. She pulled Mikoto's face towards hers and…

***

In the present, Haruhime almost fainted at her own boldness. Alcohol indeed was the most dangerous of all substances. As she tried to put her thoughts back together, Aisha got tired of waiting. She grabbed the renard and hoisted her over her shoulder. She then carried her young companion out from Daedalus Street and back onto the main boulevard.

"There, you're out of the maze," said the Amazon. "Now, I think I saw the Black Crow walking towards her former home with that War God. If you want to talk to her, go now." As she pushed Haruhime away, she whispered one final piece of advice.

"Don't look at her collarbone; it'll make you faint."

***

Haruhime stood outside the door to the Takemikazuchi Familia home. She knocked at the door and waited until finally, Ouka opened the door. He gave her a sly grin.

"I bet I can guess what you're here for. Or rather, who," said the large man. He nodded inside. "She's talking to our God at the moment. I think you should listen."

Haruhime stepped inside and followed Ouka down a hallway. When he stopped outside some screen doors, she stopped as well. From the other side, they heard…

"Wait…so you were in love with me?" came the voice of Takemikazuchi.

"Please, Lord Takemikazuchi! Do not say it out loud! I…hear it now…" replied Mikoto.

"I would hope so!"

Haruhime noted panic in the God's voice. Ouka rolled his eyes but smiled. Thank the Gods and Goddesses that this particular misunderstanding was finally clear. But if Mikoto was confessing…what did that mean for Haruhime? Yes, Takemikazuchi was rejecting her, but wasn't there some rule about waiting? At least, the other former prostitutes from Ishtar Familia had mentioned something about that.

"Excuse me! Lord Takemikazuchi, Lady Haruhime is here to visit!" declared Ouka. The large man pulled open the door and almost shoved the renard inside.

Mikoto's face was an intense red, her eyes wide as she stared at her treasured childhood friend. For her part, Haruhime had stilled. Her tails and ears twitched erratically. The two of them were so intent on staring at each other that they didn't notice everyone else leave. When they looked around to find themselves alone, they felt themselves become more self-conscious. Mikoto continued to braid and unbraid her hair.

“Ummm, Miss Mikoto…” began Haruhime, “I wanted-”

"I have something to say!"

Haruhime flinched back.

Mikoto shut her mouth. And then said more quietly, "I have something I want to say, is that ok?"

Haruhime nodded, and the young warrior gathered her thoughts. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. When Mikoto opened them again, the renard felt herself quiver from the intensity of her gaze.

"I don't know how to do these things. I didn't know that you were someone I could be with, and I've only just started to think about it." She crossed her arms over her chest in a defensive position. "I've never had a chance to be someone who spends their time on feelings. I was an orphan, an adventurer, and a gladiator, but never a lover. I don't know if I can be the kind of woman that makes you happy." She stopped, and Haruhime held her breath. Then, something unexpected happened. Mikoto dropped down to her knees. It was the familiar dogeza position. "Please, I beg you for a chance!"

Apparently, that was all Mikoto had to say. The young samurai pushed her head to the ground. She felt her heart stop as she waited for Haruhime's response. What she wasn't expecting was giggling.

Mikoto looked up to find Haruhime smiling down at her. The renard reached down and pulled Mikoto up off the ground. She then took the samurai's hands in hers.

"Mikoto, I am not exactly your typical woman either. The only love I've ever seen is the kind that was bought and paid for. The only kind I ever felt was a storybook romance. It was a fairy tale that I tricked myself into believing." She helped Mikoto up off the ground. "I'm not sure that I'll be able to give you the love you deserve either. But I want to give that chance." She took Mikoto's hands. "We can go as slowly as you want till, we both figure this out."

And then they kissed, and they both felt something settle in them. As if they were two halves made whole.

***

Aisha was walking home. She had helped that dumb little fox find her dumb little crow. Now, she was going to go home and relax. The amazon had already put away her share of the cut from the expedition. Now, she was heading to the house to figure out how to spend it.

"I'm home!" she shouted to no one.

As far as she knew, the rest of her Familia was still away. Which is why the sight of luggage made her draw her sword.

"Who's there!" screamed Hippolyta.

"Wait, wait!" came a familiar voice.

Aisha relaxed as Lulune rounded the corner. She was waving her hands, her dog ears flat behind her. The amazon tossed her hair but still waved a hand as she walked by.

"So, how was the expedition?" asked Lulune.

Aisha shrugged.

"It was fine. I'll be saving my full report for Hermes for later." She grabbed some of the food they had lying around. "How was your trip? Did you find what you needed?"

Lulune smiled, "Yep! That's why I'm back! Actually, Lord Hermes told me to bring it to Orario to give to the March Hare!"

That caught Aisha's attention. As quick as a flash, she stole into Lulune's luggage and started digging around. The dog girl scrambled around her.

"Now, hold just a second! Lord Hermes said that it was for Bell Cranel's eyes only!"

Lulune dared not step any close, though, or else she risked facing the wrath of the amazon.

"Don't care. Besides, I'm just going to check and make sure Hermes isn't pulling another fast one on Hestia Familia." With a triumphant grin, she pulled out a black cylinder. Inscribed on it were runes in the language of the Gods. Aisha looked it over from top to bottom before turning back to Lulune. "I'm just gonna take a look at it for one day. After that, if I don't find anything suspicious, then you can bring it over to Bell Cranel."

Lulune sighed but nodded in acceptance. She had grown accustomed to her Familia member's quirks.

***

A couple days later, Hestia Familia was enjoying a much quieter evening together. They had just finished dinner and were now chatting in their sitting room.

Haruhime was curled up against Mikoto's side, and the Black Crow had draped an arm over her girlfriend's shoulder. Otohime looked back and forth enviously between the happy couple and Urashima sitting in a chair across from her. He still hadn't found out what he did wrong.

"Still though, Mikoto," began Ryuu. "I am quite glad that you decided not to try and...be with… your father."

Mikoto blushed as the others nodded sagely, except for Bell, who also blushed.

"Please, no more! I get it now!" cried out the samurai.

She buried her head in Haruhime's shoulder. The renard giggled in response.

"No, I think we get to hold this over your head," said Welf. "I mean, the entire time this was happening, we all had the same thought." Welf nudged Bell. "Isn't that, right?"

The boy couldn't look Mikoto in the eye.

"I did find that it was a little strange…."

Haruhime smiled. "We all have our first crushes. Just as you were mine, Master Bell."

The room stilled. Everyone was surprised to hear Haruhime speak those words.

"Eh?" said Bell.

The others looked ready to object, but Hestia held a finger up to her lips. The Goddess was smiling as the events unfolded.

Haruhime nodded. "You were my hero, and I loved you for it. But I think I found something better." Haruhime planted a kiss on the crown of Mikoto's head. "I found a partner."

Chapter Text

It was the middle of the night, and Elwin was lying awake in bed. For the past week, he could not sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he was back in the clearing with Celdia. His new skill meant that he couldn’t feel fear, but he still felt something deep in the pit of his stomach.

“I am here to talk if you want,” said Filvis, floating in front of him.

“Did you ever have sleepless nights?” asked Elwin.

Filvis nodded. “I spent countless nights wracked with guilt. If you like, I can give you some advice. I have some habits that I developed. But first, you need to get dressed.”

Elwin hopped out of bed. As he slipped on his robes, Filvis waited nearby. Most of the time, she was sarcastic and a little bit irritable. But now, she was relaxed. She seemed to have made peace with her situation.

“So, what do we do now?”

Filvis gestured outside. “You have a lot of nervous energy that you need to burn off. I usually did so with training.”

Elwin nodded. He walked outside to find a blanket of stars overhead and the moon hanging in the sky. He gazed at it appreciatively before he felt ghost Filvis try to poke him in the shoulder.

“We did not come here to gaze at the stars.”

Elwin nodded before putting his staff in the ready position. He set his feet apart and started swinging. As he duelled his imaginary opponent, he saw Filvis gradually frown more and more. Eventually, he stopped.

“What am I doing wrong?”

Filvis shrugged. “If it’s humans that you’re fighting, then you are fine. But none of these moves would work on monsters.”

Elwin nodded along. He had imagined a human opponent for his shadow duel.

“So, what should I do differently?”

Filvis walked over, her feet gliding across the ground. She squatted down and pointed at his feet. “You need a stronger stance.” She stood back up to look him in the eye. “You intend to protect our Lefiya, correct?”

Elwin nodded.

“Then, you need to have a better stance for receiving impacts. In many cases, monsters will knock you off your feet with their sheer size.” Filvis was quiet for a second. “Besides, you have to be ready. The Sun Seekers are still coming.”

Elwin shivered. The sight of his own heart flashed in front of his eyes. There was Celdia’s smile and the great big tree. Filvis’s hand touched his shoulder, and he came back to the clearing.

“I don’t want you to die either,” said the she-elf.

She smiled, and Elwin smiled back.

He returned to his room a little bit later. The sleep went well, but not as well as the night of the party.

***

That night, Elwin did not feel like drinking. He was tired, and he knew himself. His mood had been particularly sour that day. So, he stayed away from the bottle. Sitting on either side were Riveria and Lefiya. They had noticed his mood and were trying to comfort him.

“If you want, we can leave,” offered Lefiya.

She reached out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder. At that moment, the little elf forgot her own despair to help someone she cared about. Elwin almost shied away but was stopped by Riveria. The high elf had seemed to notice Elwin’s reluctance to talk to Lefiya. When Elwin turned back, he came face to face with Lefiya’s pained expression. The half-elf sighed but took Lefiya’s arm. He walked her into the Hostess of Fertility’s backyard. When they stopped, Elwin turned to face her. Lefiya reached out to take his other hand, and the two of them stood there in the darkness.

“I know what the other skill does,” said Elwin.

Lefiya tilted her head. “You mean the second soul one?”

Elwin nodded. As he nodded, Filvis puffed into existence next to him with wide eyes.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked.

Elwin looked her in the eye and nodded. Lefiya turned her head to look where he was and found nothing. Her eyes turned back to him, filled with confusion.

Elwin closed his eyes and let out a long breath. He reopened his eyes and looked Lefiya in the eye. He knew it had been happening for a while now, but now he really understood what was going on. Elwin was falling in love with the little elf. He was falling for the way she pretended not to care about things. He fell for the way she got irritated by the most minor inconvenience. And he was head over heels about how open her heart was to everyone around her.

“Lefiya, when Filvis gave me her magic stone, a part of her came with it,” explained Elwin. “Some part of Filvis’s consciousness is in me now. I see her ghost and hear her voice in my head.”

Lefiya frowned. “That’s not funny. I know that things aren’t easy for you right now, but you don’t get to be cruel.”

Elwin shook his head. “I’m not lying, I promise. She’s standing close by.” At Lefiya’s skeptical expression and raised eyebrow, he looked over at Filvis. “What can I tell her to convince her?”

Filvis mulled the thought over. Then, the ghost blushed.

“Tell her about our promise…to see the lights of the Wishe Forest. Tell her…”

And Elwin repeated the vow word for word. He said everything that Filvis told him to. At first, Lefiya was still confused. But slowly, things started to click. She brought her hands to her mouth, and tears formed in the corner of her eyes. Then, she started looking around the clearing as if searching for where Filvis would be standing. Elwin retook her hands and guided her in front of Filvis. He was careful not to step in the ghost’s current ethereal form. Lefiya squinted at the spot, and Filvis started to blush even harder. But then the little elf turned away. She faced Elwin and placed a hand on his chest.

“She’s not really in this courtyard, though. She’s in here, with you,” Lefiya smiled. “Which is good, so I can protect the both of you at the same time, then.”

Elwin looked up at her. “You don’t think there’s something wrong with me?”

Lefiya tilted her head. “Why would I think that?”

“Because…” Elwin’s voice dropped out. “Filvis is gone because of me.”

“NO!” declared Lefiya with a stomp of her foot. “Filvis is gone because of that horribly disgusting monster!”

Behind her, Ghost Filvis nodded along. Then, a new voice spoke up.

“And I am going to find that monster, and I’m going to rend it apart. I am going to tear the vile creature apart piece by piece.”

Riveria walked out, as serene as ever, but the intensity of her bearing made the other two-step back.

“Hey now,” began Elwin, raising his arms. “There’s no need to get so gruesome.”

Riveria responded by placing a hand on his shoulder. She smiled, and Elwin took comfort in it, but he also saw something dark in her eyes.

“You are my little brother, and he almost took you from me. For that, I am going to ruin him. I will erase his essence from the mortal plane.”

Lefiya stepped away, surprised at her mentor’s dark words. One person was not so afraid to call her out, though.

“Are you doing ok? This isn’t like you,” responded Elwin.

Riveria shook her head. “To be honest, I don’t know. What I do know is that I felt that something was wrong, and I wasn’t there. That’s my job, I have a lot of responsibilities, but I still wasn’t there. I’m still learning how to be a big sister, but I don’t want to fail.”

Elwin surged forward to wrap his arms around Riveria. He squeezed tight. Riveria was surprised to see that he was taller than her. She always knew it, but this was the moment she realized just how big he was. Her head came up to his chest. She slowly brought her arms around and hugged him back. The two siblings felt the tension leave their bodies. For the first time since he had left for the expedition, Riveria was able to take a deep breath.

“Ummm, Riveria, would you mind if I stayed with you tonight? I don’t know how well I’ll be able to sleep,” asked Elwin.

Riveria pulled back. She reached up one hand to ruffle his hair. She smiled as she said, “Of course. Actually, why don’t I come with you to Hearth Manor? I think you need as much family as possible.” The high elf then turned to Lefiya. “Would you like to come with us? Ais did say that you slept better in the Dungeon with him around.”

Lefiya turned a dark shade of red but nodded. The three elves walked inside while Riveria informed Loki of the situation. The crimson-haired Goddess looked over, her slit-like eyes staring into Elwin’s soul. She turned back to Riveria and gave a single nod. The high elf led them outside, and then they started to walk home. Riveria walked a couple feet ahead to give the two some space.

“So, you haven’t been sleeping well either?” asked Elwin.

Lefiya nodded, her grip on her staff tightening. “It’s almost like…every time I close my eyes, I see her ripping out her magic stone. Or I see you getting stabbed through the chest.”

Elwin reached out a hand and rested it on hers. “I came back. She gave her all, and I plan on living every part of my life in honour of her. If you’d like, I’d love to have you along for the journey.”

Lefiya smiled. “I might be a little too emotional for a decision right now, but I think that I’d love to walk with you.” She leaned her head on his shoulder, and he leaned his head on hers.