Familia Myth: Journey to Hero Chapter 3 (Patreon)

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Hello friends and fans, Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of Familia Myth: Journey to Hero! Bell and Hestia have to stay at an Inn while their home is rebuilt into something better! A new path to the Dungeon every morning might lead to a new meeting. A new place may also lead to hearing things that spark a strong desire.

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So without further delay, please enjoy.

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Chapter 3 – Hostess and Determination

“This is a nice Inn.” Bell smiled at their room for the next few days. It was spacious, with a queen size bed, a private bathroom, and all the amenities. At 700 Valis a night, it was costly, but it was worth it.

“I figured we could splurge for a couple of days.” Hestia grinned brightly at the large room. “If we indulge at night, we’ll have to be quieter than at our place.” She giggled when Bell’s face went red at her words.

“Goddess!” Bell sputtered out and Hestia couldn’t help but hug him. He was too cute when he was flustered.

Hephaestus had indeed been kind enough to loan them a space to store their furniture. The two Goddesses had spent some time chatting while some of the Hephaestus’ children had moved the furniture over to the storage location. Hestia gushed about Bell and their relationship to her niece with a glowing smile. The redheaded, Goddess of the Forge had been shocked, but the genuine happiness and love in her aunt’s tone had made her smile. Clearly the young man had made an immense change in Hestia.

-Morning ~ On the way to the Dungeon-

“So if I just go straight down this street, I should get to the Guild pretty quickly.” Bell made a mental note as he walked down the new route he was taking to the Guild and the Dungeon. This particular route was only about two streets over from the one he usually took almost every morning.

Bell suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. He felt eyes on him. It was a powerful, penetrating gaze that made the hairs all over his body stand on end. He didn’t feel any malice in the unseen person’s look, but the sheer weight of the stare felt almost physical on his shoulders. It vanished a second later and Bell released the tension in his muscles.

“Excuse me…” It was a human girl, probably a year or two older than he was. She had bluish-grey hair that was tied with a small knot in a ponytail style. Her eyes matched the color of her hair and her skin was light, smooth and without blemish. She wore a white blouse and a green, knee-length skirt. Over the skirt she wore a slightly long half apron tied around her waist. Black stockings covered her legs and a pair of brown boots covered her feet. “You dropped this.” In her palm rested a small Magic Stone.

“Huh? A Magic Stone?” Bell looked at the small, purple stone curiously. He’d turned in all of his Magic Stones at the Guild Exchange yesterday. “I don’t think I had one to drop?” He took the small stone out of her palm when she cocked her head to the side, a look of confusion in her eyes. “Sorry for the trouble and thank you.” He apologized to the young woman with a nod of his head. The Magic Stone went into his pouch since the girl clearly thought it belonged to him. He wouldn’t call her a liar.

“Please think nothing of it.” The girl smiled at him. “Are you going to the Dungeon this early in the morning?”

“Yes, I usually try to get an early start.” Bell replied politely, right before his stomach let out an audible growl. He looked off to the side at the slight embarrassment. He’d left the Inn before Hestia had fully woken up. It was her day off and he liked to let her sleep in on those days.

“Are you hungry, perhaps?” The teen giggled at him behind her hand.

“Yeah…I was going to buy something on the way.” Bell admitted to the grey-eyed teen.

The girl didn’t say a word, only quickly entering the building they were standing in front of for a moment. In the seconds she was gone, Bell realized that the building was a rather large tavern called the ‘Hostess of Fertility’. When the girl, who Bell quickly realized must be a waitress at the tavern; returned she was carrying a small basket with her.

“The kitchen isn’t open yet, so this isn’t much, but if you’d like.” She held out the basket to him. Under the cloth, Bell could make out what looked to be cut sandwiches.

“Huh?!” Bell started at the offer. “No, I couldn’t…” He shook his head. “Isn’t this your lunch?” The teen looked thoughtfully at Bell for a second.

“I have only one condition Mister Adventurer,” She held up her right hand with her index finger extended. “I’ll make this sacrifice so that you can eat for free this morning, and in exchange you’ll have dinner here at the Hostess of Fertility tonight.” Bell stared at the waitress for a moment, not moving to take the basket as he processed her condition. “Go on; take it…since now I know I’ll be getting a good sale tonight.”

“Hey, that’s not fair…” Bell couldn’t help but chuckle as he accepted the small basket. “I guess I’ll be stopping by for dinner tonight.” He smiled at the older girl.

“Please do, I’ll be waiting.” The young woman giggled as she handed over the basket.

“I’m Bell Cranel. What’s your name?” Bell introduced himself.

“I’m Syr Flover, Bell.” Syr told him her name and the two parted ways with smiles.

As Bell continued walking towards the Dungeon, he pulled out one of the half sandwiches. “Over three weeks in Orario and I still fell for a con like that…” He shook his head ruefully before taking a bite of the sandwich. It wasn’t bad at all and he quickly finished the first one. He still wondered about that intense gaze he’d felt on him right before meeting Syr. It had partially colored their meeting, though he was almost certain such a look hadn’t come from the waitress.

-Dungeon-

“Grawwr!” A Kobold growled as it leapt at Bell with claws raised and its muzzle open wide to sink its fangs into him.

Bell spun on his heel to pivot and entered the Kobold’s guard from the side. A flash of his Hephaestus Familia knife across the monster’s abdomen saw a fountain of blood fall to the stone floor. The Kobold staggered a few steps forward before collapsing and laying still.

“Raargh!” More Kobolds barked and snarled at him, four in total. The small pack charged him all at once and Bell darted forward to meet them.

‘Right, duck, left hand!’ Bell saw the lead Kobold’s arm and predicted its strike. He dodged the swipe of the claws and then used the knife he’d gotten from the Guild, in his left hand, to stab deep into the beast. A split second later and he viciously yanked the knife sideways through the Kobold and sent another spray of blood through the air. The monster collapsed just like the first one and Bell skipped back twice to avoid being caught in a pincer move by the last three Kobolds.

A Kobold lunged, looking to slash Bell open. The white-haired teen slashed its fingers off with his right hand knife and then opened its throat with the left hand knife. He pivoted, keeping up his momentum, and the Kobold that tried to flank him for a bite attack ended up with his left hand knife stabbed through the upper jaw and into its head. The last Kobold hesitated for a brief instant at seeing its numbers advantage disappear. It lunged forward anyway, not having the ability to feel fear, and it was met with a knife through its eye.

“Even a pack of five Kobolds isn’t too bad now.” Bell gave himself a small pat on the back for his progress. The last time he’d struggled with just three Kobolds, but now he’d avoided taking any damage from five. That was progress, right? “If I want to catch up to the High Level Adventurers, then I have to keep moving forward.” He nodded as he cleaned off his knives and sheathed the left hand one. He started extracting the Magic Stones from the five dead Kobolds with the speed of experience.

-Later-

“Ssshhhrrraa!” The Dungeon Lizard hissed at Bell, its surprise attack having failed to kill the red-eyed Adventurer. Bell was sporting a somewhat painful bruise on his back from being blindsided as he’d entered this larger corridor though. The lizard leapt again and Bell hacked off the left front leg with one knife while the other stabbed into the monster’s back. A strong pull on the knife and the Dungeon Lizard’s back was sliced wide open in a spray of blood.

“Damn…sneak attacks.” Bell huffed out a breath as he rubbed his back. The dead monster was quickly rolled over and its Magic Stone extracted. The body began to crumble away into the familiar white and grey dust a second later.

He walked along, making sure to keep his senses sharper than before just in case of another sneak attack. He was getting close to the stairs leading to the Fifth Floor again. He’d held back on returning since the Minotaur incident, but maybe it was time to give it another go? With a steadying breath, the Level One Adventurer headed down the stairs when he saw them.

Bell walked for a bit, leaving the stairs behind him without issue. So far it seemed like everything was normal on the Fifth Floor. This well-traveled path would be mostly monster free since so many parties cleared it out as they passed through. He quickly consulted his map, something Eina suggested he buy from the Guild, and took off down a corridor to the right.

“Rrrriiibbiiiit~” Bell blinked as he saw the large frog-like monster a bit further down the corridor. The one-eyed monster was called a Frog Shooter. They were somewhat common on the Fifth and Sixth Floors of the Dungeon. “Getting close while avoiding the tongue is going to be difficult.” He drew his knives and edged closer towards the monster. If he was grabbed by the long, prehensile tongue that the Frog Shooter used as its main form of attack, it would be a ticket straight into its mouth.

The frog monster noticed him after a moment of Bell slowly getting closer to it. The Frog Shooter launched its tongue at speed and Bell raised his left arm to block. The tongue made a thud as it impacted his vambrace, but it managed to wrap around his arm and start dragging him in. Bell let the monster reel him in for a second before he hacked off its tongue with his right hand knife. The monster freaked out and flailed in pain from the loss of part of its huge tongue. Bell blitzed forward and stabbed the single, large eye with his left hand knife. The blade sank deep, spewing blood, and the Frog Shooter dropped dead.

“Ow…” Bell shook out his left arm. The vambrace had absorbed a good amount of the damage, but that tongue strike still hurt a bit. He took a second to remember where the Frog Shooter’s Magic Stone was located. He would have to be quick once he opened the monster up. Frog Shooters were one of the many monsters that had poisonous or acidic insides. Touching them bare-handed was highly unadvised for more than a few seconds. When he removed the stone, sitting slightly lower in the chest, closer to the stomach area, he noticed the larger size than most of the monsters he’d killed on the higher floors.

“I guess the Fifth Floor really is the first cut-off point.” Bell added the Magic Stone to his backpack as the Frog Shooter slowly dispersed into ash-like dust. “Just like Eina said, it’s more complex, the Monsters are different and stronger, it really is different from the first four floors.”

He continued on in hopes of finding more Monsters that he’d never seen before. After all, stronger Monsters meant bigger Magic Stones, and bigger stones were worth more Valis for the Hestia Familia. He trekked further into the Fifth Floor with cautious optimism. He was on the lookout for anything that might try and ambush him. Down here it would definitely be worse than a Dungeon Lizard.

“What’s that?” Bell whispered to himself as he noted a humanoid figure in the larger cavern he was about to enter. It almost looked normal, except for the rather long arms. The pitch-black body that was revealed as it got closer to some of the natural glowing crystals of the Dungeon quickly unmasked it. “A Wall Shadow…they’re the strongest Monsters on the Fifth and Sixth Floors.”

“Gugugu?” The Wall Shadow didn’t make beast-like sounds. It let out a weird, almost artificial sound. The single, large, glowing circle on its head focused on Bell. Without prompting the Wall Shadow bolted forward at impressive speed. Bell leapt forward at an angle and kept track of the monster’s movements. The three, knife-like fingers left scratches across the wall. They were very sharp, easily as much as a well-made blade.

“Come on then!” Bell drew both knives and engaged the Monster.

Left, right, parry, back step, pivot, strike, block; the battle was semi-even. The Wall Shadow’s long reach had let it scratch Bell’s chest plate and his vambraces as he failed to completely outmaneuver the monster’s claws. Bell had slashed the pitch-black body twice, but the Wall Shadow ignored the damage. It didn’t bleed like the bestial Monsters. It was closer to a golem or some other autonomous object. Only dealing it a fatal blow would stop the battle.

“Nnrrrgggh!” Bell ground his teeth as the Wall Shadow’s claws caught him just below his armor. Thankfully he’d been moving backwards so he wasn’t gutted by the blade-like claws. The lacerations weren’t very deep, but they hurt! The burning pain sparked more adrenaline to be dumped into his blood by his body. With his body running on maximum output, Bell spun under a swipe and caught the Wall Shadow from behind. His right hand knife slammed into the glowing circle on the back of its head. The blade and his hand shattered the circle and came out the other side of the monster’s head. It was more like a cylinder it turned out, and now Bell’s knife and hand were all the way through the dead Wall Shadow’s head.

“Potion…potion…” Bell removed his hand from the dead Monster and reached into the side pocket of his backpack for one of the light-blue potions. He popped the cork out of the vial and poured it on his three lacerations. With a slight hiss, the wounds began to heal rapidly. Bell noticed the three weren’t completely healed when the potion wore off a moment later. With a grimace he popped another one and poured half of it onto the partially healed injury and drank the rest. “If that had been deeper, these Low Potions may not have saved me.” He exhaled as the Potions worked their magic on him and healed him up as if he hadn’t just had three significant lacerations on his torso. “Maybe it’s time to look at Mid Potions?”

Bell put his thoughts of stronger Potions aside as he opened up the Wall Shadow’s chest. The pitch-black body really didn’t have anything inside it except for a Magic Stone. When Bell pulled it out, the Wall Shadow went up in black ash-like dust near instantly. He placed the Magic Stone into his backpack and noticed something on the ground. Picking it up, he looked at it closely for a moment before realizing what it was.

“A Drop Item!” Bell smiled widely at the blade in his hand. Wall Shadow’s Finger Blade was the Drop Item of the Wall Shadow monster. With just a handle added to the item, it could be made into a decent knife. It was one of the Drop Items that was practically a free weapon for an Adventurer if they got it. “I bet this will sell great at the Exchange.” He grinned as he added the drop to his backpack. A Kobold Nail sold for 900 Valis and it was a common Monster. A Wall Shadow was a much stronger enemy, so there was a good chance that the blade would fetch three or four times as much, maybe more!

Bell spent the next few hours on the Fifth Level. He killed another four Frog Shooters, a small horde of Goblins that were all a bit bigger than the ones he was used to, a few more Kobolds, and a larger than average Dungeon Lizard. On the way back up to the surface he slayed a few more Goblins and Kobolds that he happened to cross paths with too. When he reached the basement of Babel Tower, he was slightly bruised, worn out a fair bit, and hungry. But the smile of accomplishment on his face was bright. He’d collected a lot of Magic Stones today and even had a good Drop Item to boot!

“Bell!” Eina nearly rushed over to him when she saw his disheveled appearance. “You were injured?” She pointed at the three slashes in his black shirt that were visible under his brown jacket.

“Yeah, but my Potions took care of it.” Bell assured her as they moved over to one of the meeting areas to talk.

“Alright, let’s get your report started.” Eina smiled, seeing that Bell was okay. “Let’s start with your progress into the Dungeon.” The Half-Elf brushed her brunette hair behind her long, pointed ear as she held a pen over a report form.

“Well, I decided to give the Fifth Floor a try again…” Bell began to talk, telling Eina everything that had happened that day. He spoke about his successes against the upper floor Monsters. Eina had smiled when he told her about taking out Frog Shooters without injury. That was a standard Fifth and Sixth Floor Monster and Bell had slain it fairly easily. It was when he got to the Wall Shadow that she stopped him.

“A Wall Shadow?!” Eina leaned forward, her green-eyes wide behind her glasses. “Those are the strongest Monsters on the Fifth and Sixth Floors! What were you thinking taking on one by yourself?!” She now knew what had injured him and her worry was palpable. “Wall Shadows are known to kill Rookie Adventurers one on one! I know I taught you that, Mister!” She pressed her left index finger against his forehead with a frown on her face.

“It noticed me! I didn’t have a choice when it charged!” Bell held up both hands to try and placate his Dungeon Advisor’s worry and irritation. “I managed to kill it!”

“I figured that much, you wouldn’t be here otherwise.” Eina gave him a flat look as Bell laughed sheepishly. “Well, at least you won, so I won’t be too hard on you.” She smiled at him and Bell returned it with a grin.

“I got the Drop Item too!” Bell was all smiles as he pulled his backpack off and took the blade out. Eina wasn’t an Appraiser, but even she knew what a Wall Shadow’s Finger Blade looked like.

“You got lucky, huh?” Eina graced him with a soft smile. Bell felt his cheeks warm as Eina began to write don’t his encounter with the Wall Shadow on the form. He really needed to deal with this crush on Eina. He and Hestia were serious. He couldn’t go around crushing on other girls like this.

After Eina left to take his report for filing, Bell headed over to the Exchange. He had to wait for a little bit as it was peak time for Adventurers to be returning from the Dungeon. When he got to the window he poured out the Magic Stones from his backpack into the tray. The amount made the teller blink in shock for a moment. They had to remove a few of the stones to let the tray slide under the window properly. Once all of the Magic Stones were on the other side of the window, Bell placed the Drop Item into the tray and let it be inspected.

“Wait…this is…” The teller looked back and forth between Bell and the Wall Shadow’s Finger Blade a few times. “Kid…you’re really something else.” He chuckled before returning to his work. Magic Stones were weighed, the blade was inspected, and then the ledger was filled out after the teller checked what Bell assumed was a price list on the wall of the exchange booth. “Magic Stones come out to 7,400 Valis and the Wall Shadow’s Finger Blade is 4,050 Valis. The total comes out to 11,450 Valis. You’ve gotta be one of the better Rookies to come through Orario in the last year or so.”

“Thank you, sir.” Bell gave a short bow as the larger drawer on the side of the exchange was pushed over to his side. A small sack containing his money was sitting on the bottom and Bell retrieved it, stowing it away in his backpack.

Bell headed for the Hostess of Fertility after finishing up at the Guild Exchange. He did have an agreement to keep. Hestia was meeting up with Miach for drinks tonight to celebrate her Familia’s rising success and Bell couldn’t help but feel proud. Not very long ago, Hestia wouldn’t have been able to afford to go drinking, much less treat her friend. Miach Familia wasn’t much better off than Hestia Familia in terms of money. Bell felt it was a good thing for both Gods to be able to enjoy a night of relaxation and drinks.

-At the Guild-

“Ah man, it looks like it’s going to rain tonight.” A pink-haired Guild Worker bemoaned as the clouds in the sky gathered. “First we get stuck with overtime and now rain on the way home? No luck at all.” She draped herself over Eina’s back, her arms over the Half-Elf’s shoulders. “I know we’re busy because of the festival and all...but you’d think the one’s upstairs would cut us a little slack.” She huffed.

“Get off Misha, you’re too heavy.” Eina bumped her friend off her back. She was still going through the paperwork for the day.

“Hmm?” Misha noticed the paperwork that Eina was going through. “Are those Adventurer Profiles?” She spotted one next to the rest and quickly snatched it with a grin. “This is your Newbie, isn’t it, Eina?” She had a teasing smile on her lips.

“Ah, hey!” Eina reached for the stolen paper.

“Huh? He went down to the Fifth Floor in just over two weeks? He beat a Wall Shadow single-handedly?! This kid is amazing!” Misha’s eyes were wide as she read over the profile.

“Stop that!” Eina took the paper back from her friend. “Bell is doing very well, but he almost died to that Wall Shadow. It was only Potions that saved him.” Eina sighed with some worry seeping into her tone. “He’s done remarkably well for a Solo Adventurer. But the Fifth Floor is when things start to get more dangerous. He at least listens to me and bought a map so that he could navigate easier. But the Monsters get stronger and more of them spawn at once too.”

“Heh heh, a little protective, aren’t we?” Misha grinned teasingly behind her hand as she leaned closer to her friend. “He caught your eye, Eina?” Eina briefly thought back to the times she and Bell spent together and how much she enjoyed them. Her cheeks went pink and she tried to slap at Misha, only for the pinkette to run off with her own paperwork while giggling loudly.

Eina sighed as she lowered her hands. ‘…Bell. What are you doing right now?’ The lovely Half-Elf wondered of her favored Adventurer.

-Hostess of Fertility-

“Seems lively.” Bell commented with a grin as he listened to the noises coming from the tavern for a moment. He stepped into the building and instantly noticed something specific. ‘It’s all waitresses.’ He noticed not a single man was wearing the uniform of the other workers. The white-haired Adventurer noticed a woman behind the bar, serving food to two customers. Just based on her build; she was either a Dwarf woman that was very tall for her Race, or she was Half-Dwarf possibly.

Bell felt his heartrate pick up a little as he saw two cute Cat Girls, a dark-haired Elf, and he thought he saw a blonde Human girl enter the back a second ago. ‘Is this real? They even have an Elf working here! Elves are known for their pride. She’s really pretty too. Who knew that the flower garden of beautiful women from my dreams actually existed?’

“Bell…” A voice tried to get the young man’s attention.

‘Wait…I can afford to eat here, right? I made some good money today…this place shouldn’t be out of my league, I hope.’ After living on very low funds since coming to Orario, Bell was having a hard time breaking his dirt poor mentality.

“Bell, you’re here.” Syr smiled when she saw his red-eyes focus on her.

“Ah, Syr…” Bell returned her smile. “Here I am?” He felt like he might’ve screwed that greeting up a little.

“Yes, welcome.” Syr gave a short bow. “One customer now seating!” She turned and called out to the bar. Bell followed after her as he was led to a stool at one side of the bar.

“So, yer Syr’s guest, eh?” The woman behind the bar questioned with a smile. She had brown eyes and long brown hair that was tied up in the back with two long bangs framing her face. She wore a different colored version of the Hostess of Fertility uniform than the others. Hers was a dark-blue color, probably to denote a higher position at the tavern. “Haha. You’ve got quite the cute face for an Adventurer!” She set a wooden cup on the bar top with some force. “Yer the one wantin’ the feast, I hear! Keep on spendin’!”

‘FEAST?!’ Bell’s head whipped around to look at Syr but the waitress turned her head to look in a different direction. “When did I say I wanted a feast?!” His red-eyes bored into the young woman.

“Ehehehehe~” Syr stuck the tip of her tongue out at him playfully.

“This isn’t the time for ‘ehehehe’…” Bell looked over at the menu prices. “There’s no way I’ll order that much food!”

“Ah, I don’t have the strength to defend myself, because I didn’t have breakfast~” Syr put the back of her left hand to her forehead as she pretended to sway.

“No, no, no, you don’t get to double down on your con!” Bell shook his head at the waitress.

“Heh heh, I’m just kidding.” Syr smiled at him. “Treat yourself to a bit, that’s all I ask. Take your time and enjoy your meal.”

“Just a bit, huh?” Bell looked at her in faux disbelief.

“So, what would you like?” Syr asked for his order.

“Oh, um, pasta sounds good.” Bell replied having seen it on the menu. Syr passed the order over to the woman behind the bar before she sat down next to Bell. “Um, what about your job?”

“The kitchens are doing fine right now, so I can take a quick break.” Syr replied with a grin.

“Thank you for this morning though,” Bell gave the grey-haired girl a small smile. “The sandwiches were good. I’ll bring the basket back tomorrow morning if that’s alright?”

“That’s fine, and it was worth it for me anyway.” Syr chuckled as Bell exhaled through his nose heavily.

“Worth it to get me to spend money on dinner, you mean.” Bell stated with a shake of his head.

“Sorry about that.” Syr chuckled at him. “The owner of this place is Mama Mia, a former Adventurer. She only hires women. She even welcomes girls with questionable backgrounds with open arms. I decided to work here because it looked like fun.” Bell listened as Syr told him about her hobby of talking to all the people that came through the doors of the tavern. How she enjoyed collecting the stories they told and the discoveries they brought to light about things she’d normally never know about.

“The big party with the reservation is here!” The brunette Cat Girl called out as she led in a large group of people. Both Bell and Syr looked towards the door and the new Adventurer almost choked on his breath as he caught sight of a familiar young woman. Then his eyes registered everyone she was with on top of that.

‘Miss Ais?! Loki Familia?!’ Bell’s eyes were wide as he watched the Familia enter. It seemed to be mostly the Executives, but a few other members were there as well. They were all quickly seated between two tables and drinks were brought to them in short order. Bell’s eyes followed the Familia, more specifically his eyes focused on Ais, Tiona, and Tione in a cycle. He couldn’t help what his teenage heart desired! He might feel guilty later though….

“Loki Familia caught your eye, eh?” Syr asked with a smile. “Goddess Loki took an interest in our tavern, so they’re regulars here.”

“Nice work in the Dungeon! Tonight we live it up! Drink!” A slender woman with long, light-red hair tied into a simple ponytail raised a flagon into the air along with a few members of the Familia. She wore dark-blue boots, black thigh-high stockings, black short shorts, a dark-blue tube top that matched her boots, and black sleeves.

The Divine Aura radiating off of her let everyone know that she was a Goddess. It wasn’t hard for Bell to understand that this was Goddess Loki. She was the head of one of the Top Two Familias in all of Orario. There was quite some debate about which Familia was the true number one between Freya Familia and Loki Familia, but most didn’t want a war to break out between them to find out for sure.

‘I can see them if I come here?’ Bell mused as he watched the Familia enjoy themselves. It was only a short time later, after a few rounds of drinks, that the table with most of the Executives started getting loud, or one voice among them did at least.

“Hey, Ais, tell us that story!” Bete, the werewolf that had called Bell ‘Tomato Boy’ before laughed.

“That story?” Ais looked genuinely confused as to what story he was referring too.

“You know, the time we were all heading back and then all those Minotaurs ran off? We chased him all over the place and you finished the last one off on the Fifth Floor! Then that Tomato Boy!” He laughed before taking a deep drink from his flagon.

“You mean the big group that ran away from the Seventeenth Floor?” Tiona questioned the werewolf.

“Yeah, then the last one, made it all the way up to the Fifth Floor by some miracle!” Bete recounted with a laugh. “This wet behind the ears newbie gets chased by it, and then it corners him like a scared rabbit!” He chuckled as he finished off his drink.

“What happened to that Adventurer?” Loki questioned, there was genuine concern in the Goddess’ voice. If one of her children could’ve saved the child of another Familia and didn’t, that Familia might very well hold a grudge and that could lead to problems later.

“Ais sliced the Minotaur to pieces at the last second and saved him.” Bete chuckled, nearly shaking as he tried to hold back his laughter. “Get this, he gets absolutely splattered by the cow’s blood, turns him as red as a tomato! Then he has to walk up all the way to the surface looking like that!” Bete laughed loudly, pounding his fist on the table.

“Aww, sounds like the newbie got his initiation to the Adventurer Life is all!” Loki chuckled, happy that the child was fine. She tossed back her drink with a smile.

“Shut your foolish mouth this instant, Bete.” Riveria gave the werewolf a severe look. “It was our fault that all of those Minotaurs escaped into the upper levels. We owe that young man an apology. His story is not to be paired with ale.”

“She’s not wrong,” Tiona spoke up next. “It was because me and Tione killed the first two so fast that the rest of them panicked and bolted.”

“You’re kinda laughing at our failure if you think about it,” Tione cocked an eyebrow at the werewolf. “Are you already drunk, Bete?”

“You Elves and your pride.” Bete tsked at Riveria. “What do you three get outta sticking up for that weakling?” He looked over at Tione and Tiona. “What’s wrong with calling trash what it is?”

“Cut this out.” Loki sighed at her drunken child. “Drinks are turnin’ sour.”

“What about you, Ais?” Bete turned his gaze onto the golden-eyed girl. “What did you think of that punk?”

“He actually did very well,” Ais replied calmly. Bell felt like his heart had just skipped a beat. “Not many Level 1 Adventurers could have outrun, evaded, and stalled a Minotaur for so long all by themselves.”

Bete scoffed before speaking again. “Fine, different question then.” He looked at Ais with a smirk. “Who’re you taking home, him or me?”

“Oh wow, he is drunk.” Tiona looked at Bete with an annoyed grimace. He always ran his mouth when he had too much to drink.

“Shut up!” Bete waved the Amazon off. “So, Ais, who’s it gonna be? Who’re you gonna wave your tail at? Which man do you want on you?” Those close to the werewolf could hear the slight slur that was forming in his speech.

“Why would I ever answer a question like that?” Ais stared hard at the werewolf, a slight glare on her features.

“Should we shut him up?” Gareth questioned Finn at the other table.

“If Riveria doesn’t clock him over the head in a second, then I’m sure either Tiona or Tione will.” Finn sighed as he turned to face the drunken Bete. They really needed to keep a better eye on what drinks the werewolf had when they went out like this.

Thud

The clamor was broken by the loud sound. Everyone in the bar turned to find the source of the noise. They quickly found it when they saw the white-haired young man standing at the bar with his hand flat on the wood. In front of the teen was a finished meal. When he moved his hand from the bar top, it was revealed that Valis were left on the counter. It was obviously payment for his food.

“Bell?” Syr blinked at the unexpected display.

“Thank you for dinner, it was great.” Bell spoke in a controlled tone. He looked up, his red-eyes hard but when his gaze met Mama Mia’s, she saw the fire that burned behind them. “A round of drinks for the Loki Familia. With my thanks to Ais for saving me and letting me keep the Minotaur’s Magic Stone.” He set another stack of coins next to his payment. “Don’t give one to the drunk though.”

With his piece said, the white-haired young man walked out of the bar with determination burning in his chest like a miniature sun. Ais blinked as she watched the whole transaction, having heard what Bell said. She stood up to follow, but by the time she got to the door, Bell was nowhere in sight. She returned to the table to find Bete tied up on the floor with Riveria standing over him with angry disappointment on her face. The majority of the Familia was laughing at his predicament and the mood in the tavern was quickly returning.

“Let me go, damn it!” Bete demanded, his speech still slightly slurred.

“Drinks for the Loki Familia,” Mia chuckled as she and the two Cat Girl waitresses brought over the round of drinks that Bell had paid for. “Compliments of the young man you saved, Kenki.” She grinned at the blonde girl.

“Hey, he bought a round. That earns him some respect!” Loki laughed as the good times started up again.

“So, that’s the guy you saved, huh Ais?” Tiona grinned at her friend. “He’s not too bad looking, is he?”

“I suppose not?” Ais tilted her head slightly at the tone in the Amazon’s voice. She looked somewhat confused.

“Those eyes of his sure looked nice.” Tione grinned as well, getting in some subtle teasing of her own.

“Those were the eyes of a man determined to prove someone wrong.” Loki grinned as her red-eyes were revealed. “Seems you lit a fire in the kid, Bete.” She laughed at the tied up werewolf.

“Just untie me and let me get a drink!” Bete struggled to get back to his feet with Riveria basically pinning him down with her staff.

“You heard the kid,” Mia shook her head as she looked down at the Adventurer on the ground. “None for you, light-weight.” She placed a flagon in front of a grinning Loki and then one in front of Ais.

-Inn-

‘I’ll show him,’ Bell declared in his mind as determination raged within him. ‘Weak? Newbie? Trash?! I’ll make him eat those words!’ He was back at the Inn that he and Hestia were staying at until their home was completed. The Level 5 Adventurer’s words would’ve made him angry and potentially question his worth had other circumstances in his life not countered them. He wouldn’t run off half-cocked, even though he’d been tempted to enter the Dungeon to prove the other man wrong. No, he’d keep this burning torrent of determination inside until he went to the Dungeon tomorrow. Then he’d prove Bete Loga wrong! He’d kill more monsters than he ever had before! He’d clear areas single-handedly! No one would say that he was weak or trash again!

With that determination bottled up inside just waiting to erupt the moment he set foot in the Dungeon tomorrow morning; Bell began to clean and check over his equipment. The fire wouldn’t go out, merely be held close until it was time. It was to this that Hestia returned to their rented room after drinks with Miach. She instantly picked up on Bell’s mood and after hearing the story, and grimacing at Loki in the privacy of her mind, she agreed with Bell.

“Let’s update that Status Bell!” Hestia patted the bed. “We’ll show them all!”

“Yes, Goddess!” Bell removed his shirt and lay face down on the bed. Hestia gently straddled his back and pricked herself with a needle. The single drop of her blood hit Bell’s back and his Falna began to glow.

‘He’s growing so fast! Maybe too fast!’ Hestia blinked as she viewed his experiences and allotted the Excelia into his Falna to let it grow further. ‘This Liaris Freese Skill…it’s sending him beyond Adventurers that’ve been Dungeon crawling for three times longer than Bell has!’ She finished updating his Falna before placing a paper on his back and copying over the updated numbers. Once she was done, she slid off his back and handed the paper over to him.

-Status-

Bell Cranel

Level 1

Strength – H 124 > H 172

Defense – I 55 > I 98

Utility – H 129 > H 187

Agility – G 204 > G 256

Magic – I 0

Magic

-

Skills

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

-Status-

“I grew so much again.” Bell stared at his numbers in wonder. “That’s a full 200 points from just today?”

“You’re improving by leaps and bounds, Bell.” Hestia praised him. “It’s almost like you’re in a growth spurt. I think you have a real talent for this. Being an Adventurer suits you.”

“Thank you, Hestia.” Bell smiled warmly at her.

“You’re going to be amazing, Bell, I know it.” Hestia hugged him.

“I want to get an early start tomorrow.” Bell returned her hug. “I’m going to take a shower and turn in early.”

“Alright,” Hestia agreed as she stood up from the bed with him. “Let’s take a shower together.” She grinned at him playfully. “The shower in the basement wasn’t really big enough.”

“You really are insatiable, Hestia.” Bell kissed the top of her head.

“Oh we won’t be going too far, you want to get to bed soon.” Hestia smiled as she took his hand and led him towards the private bathroom in their room. “I’m just going to make sure you’re all relaxed.”

The couple stripped and turned on the shower. While waiting for it to heat up to a proper temperature, they shared sweet kisses. Hestia and Bell carefully washed each other when the water was nice and warm. Lathering up a sponge, Hestia scrubbed Bell’s back, then his arms, chest, his legs and even his manhood.

Bell returned the favor, lovingly cleaning every inch of Hestia’s skin from her feet to her head. He dragged the sponge up her legs, over her sex, along her tummy, her sides, her breasts, her back, her shoulders, and her neck. He helped wash her hair next, the long, silky curtain of black still amazing in its feeling even now. Once they were clean Hestia sat Bell on the edge of the tub and kneeled between his legs.

“Hestia!” Bell gasped as the Goddess kissed the head. Hestia smiled at his reaction before her tongue came out to play. Bell could only lean back a bit and make sure to stifle his sounds of enjoyment. This was sorely put to the test when Hestia took him into her mouth. Her tongue cradled the underside of his length as she began to bob her head up and down.

“Look how stressed you are, Bell~” Hestia giggled after pulling him from between her lips. “I’ll take care of all of it for you.” She engulfed him again, slowly working her way down to the base. Her blue-eyes never left his even as she had to open her throat to fit all of his length.

“Goddess~” Bell hissed to keep the noise down. They really didn’t need the other Inn patrons knowing what they were up too.

Hestia didn’t make it easy for him at all. She bobbed her head, her tongue swirling around his tip when she pulled back to breathe. Then she’d work her way back down slowly to tease him. Other times she’d leave only the head before deep throating him in a single go. She gagged and made incredibly sexy noises as she sucked him off. Bell grabbed onto whatever was in reach to try and last longer. Hestia seemingly took that as a challenge, her eyes gaining a gleam to them as she took him to the base again, only to swallow with his cock in her throat.

“Hestia!” Bell bucked instinctively as he hit his peak with a powerful tremor through his body.

Hestia felt his hot seed erupt and fill her throat. She swallowed more, coaxing out more from her lover. Bell was seeing spots as Hestia prolonged his release with her mouth and tongue. She sucked and swallowed as she pulled back, collecting a good amount on her tongue. When he slipped from her lips, there was nothing left on his shaft, Hestia had cleaned him completely. The Goddess swallowed her prize with a sexy smile before being pulled into a warm hug by a semi-recovered Bell.

“Let’s get to bed,” Hestia whispered into his ear. “After we brush our teeth, of course.”

“Yes, Hestia.” Bell kissed the top of her head and squeezed her close.

The two were cuddled up in bed a few minutes later. Bell’s head was resting on Hestia’s large breasts as she ran her fingers through his hair. If he kept growing at this rate, she may need to ask Hephaestus for advice. Her niece had given her Blessing to hundreds of children. She had the most experience of all the Gods and Goddesses that Hestia knew when it came to the Falna. How to ask the right questions without giving anything away was the trickier part. Hephaestus was sharp and would ask her own questions if she suspected anything odd was going on.

‘Questions for later.’ Hestia smiled as Bell snuggled closer in his sleep, burying his face into her boobs over her nightgown. ‘Sleep well, Bell. You’ll show everyone, you’ll become the strongest Adventurer ever. I’ll do everything in my power to help you too! You’ll never be alone; I’ll always be beside you.’ The Goddess promised as she kissed the top of Bell’s head and closed her eyes. She was asleep with a small smile on her lips in just a few moments.

-End Chapter-

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Well, Bell has met the ladies of the Hostess of Fertility!

A strange feeling of being watched, and what amounts to a con have partially colored Bell’s first meeting with Syr. How will he get along with them all in the future though?

With more preparedness, Bell takes on the Fifth Floor fairly well as a Solo Adventurer! Even got lucky with a Drop Item too!

With Bete’s disparaging words, Bell’s determination flares up! Determination is a powerful feeling! One that Liaris Freese can empower itself with! What will be the results of a focused and determined Bell that’s out to prove that he’s not weak trash, but the future strongest Adventurer and Hero?

A certain event is coming soon to Orario! Will it be the same? Or will it be very different?

Keep reading to find out!

Let me know what you think with a review!

Until next time, later!