Sarutahiko Familia Premise Chapter 4 (Patreon)

Hello friends and fans, Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter! This Premise is very popular! Monsterphilia is here! A festival so large that it attracts thousands of people from outside of Orario to come see it! But without a certain Goddess having an interest in Bell, will things go smoothly? Bell also notices Lili being shook down by her Familia members for the first time…that should go well for them, huh? Kek!

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So, without further delay, please enjoy.

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Chapter 4 – Monsterphilia, Lili’s Situation

“So this is Monsterphilia, huh?” Bell marveled at all of the crowded streets lined with stalls.

There were many different scents in the air as food from all over the world was present for the annual event. Colorful cloth and clothes in more styles than any one person could identify were seen, both being sold and being worn by visitors from outside of Orario. The entire city was seemingly out in force to celebrate the massive festival hosted by the Ganesha Familia.

“Don’t miss the Xenos Mock Battles!” A member of Ganesha Familia stood on a small platform and hollered over the crowd. “See the pinnacle of the Ganesha Familia’s rare Taming Skill! The intelligent Monsters that we call companions! The first mock battle happens at noon!” The man handed papers with the schedule of Xenos-related events at the Amphitheatron out to everyone that was gathered around his small platform.

“Tamed Monsters?” Bell quickly went to get a paper for himself. “Battles between Xenos…” He looked over the schedule and noticed a match between a Fomoire (named Four) and a Lizardman (named Lyd) would be happening at noon. There was also an aerial battle after that between a Gargoyle (named Gros) and a Siren (named Ray). “I definitely want to see this!” Bell smiled at the paper. “Huh, they have regular taming of new Monsters taken from the Dungeon after the first two mock battles…and then the Siren and a Harpy are going to sing?!” Sure, Siren’s were supposed to use sound as a weapon in the Dungeon, but if they sang… “Huh, it might actually be nice.” Even though Bell had only been in Orario for a while, even he’d heard of some of the mysteries within the Dungeon. Some Adventurers swore they heard angelic singing coming from deeper within the Dungeon, unsure if it was a person singing, a Monster, or perhaps the Dungeon itself. “I’ve still got a bit of time until noon.” He checked the time on a clock that was set up on a building not too far away from him. Bell decided to try some of the various foods on offer before heading for the Amphitheatron.

-Amphitheatron-

“Bell!” Tiona called out with a beaming smile as she launched herself at the back of the white-haired young man.

“Miss Tiona?” Bell turned in time and caught Tiona, even spinning her around once, before setting her back on her feet. “You came to Monsterphilia too?”

“Yep!” Tiona laughed, hugging him close and giggling when he hugged her back, pulling her flush against him. “We all did!” She let go of him so that he could see Ais, Tione, and Lefiya behind her.

“Hello, Bell.” Ais smiled at him beautifully, making Bell’s heart thump in his chest. Unknowingly matching Ais’s own as they smiled at each other.

This was the first time that Bell had seen Ais in casual clothing, but the white, sleeveless blouse, purple skirt, and white stockings looked very nice on her.

“Hey, Bell~” Tione smiled at him, a slight lilt in her greeting that made Bell’s heart speed up a little.

“Miss Ais, Miss Tione.” Bell greeted them both after taking a second to gather himself. “Miss…Viridis?” He really hoped that he remembered the Elf girl’s name properly.”

“Mr. Cranel.” Lefiya returned his greeting politely, even though it looked like she was about to pout.

The small group chatted as they made their way into the stadium together. Ais had blushed cutely when Bell had complimented her outfit. Lefiya had pouted at her idol’s reaction to the compliment, while Tione and Tiona had both giggled brightly at the two of them. Bell admitted that he was very interested in seeing the Xenos. Tiona agreed with him, liking the mock battles herself. Tione also enjoyed the Xenos events, mentioning that the Siren Song of Ray was very popular. Lefiya always thought that the skill of the Ganesha Familia’s Tamers was incredible and had come to see Monsterphilia the first time that she was in Orario during the festival, solely because she was curious about the Xenos.

“Mm.” Ais looked a little less thrilled by the Xenos.

“Is there something wrong, Miss Ais?” Bell asked her quietly at seeing her expression.

Ais looked at him and let a small sigh escape her lips. “I’ve…never liked Monsters. When the Xenos were first debuted…no one could believe it. I still…worry about what they could do to people.” She admitted her distrust of the Tamed Monsters, even knowing that they could speak and think like people.

“I can understand that, Monsters are dangerous.” Bell nodded to her after a moment of thought. It would also explain why Ais was the only one of the group that had her weapon on her, even if it was just the loaned rapier from Goibniu Familia. “The Xenos have never hurt anyone though, right?”

“No.” Ais confirmed that no Xenos had ever attacked a person before.

Bell was a little bold and gently took Ais’s hand in his. “I think it’s okay to give them the benefit of the doubt. But being cautious out of concern for others is a good thing too.”

“Thank you.” Ais’s felt her face getting warm again, even as she gently squeezed Bell’s hand with her own. Tione and Tiona both grinned at them, enjoying how much Ais was smiling with Bell around.

‘Ais, no! Don’t hold hands with that human! I…I’ll hold your hand instead!’ Lefiya thought to herself, her blue eyes focused on Ais and Bell’s entwined hands. If only she wasn’t so nervous about doing such a thing with Ais! The Elf girl lamented her hesitation.

“Now! For the moment you’ve all been waiting for!” The announcement came over the speakers. “The first Xenos Mock Battle of the day!” The crowd roared in excitement. “From the east gate, the Lizardman warrior himself, Lyd!”

“Yeah!” Lyd was a red-scaled Lizardman with light armor strapped to his body, a shield in one hand, and a sword in the other. He raised his sword high to the cheers of the crowd.

“And from the west gate, the Foimore powerhouse, Four!” The announcer pointed to the opposite gate where a large goat-headed humanoid Monster walked out, carrying a large metal club and wearing armor similar to Lyd’s.

“Baauuhhh!” Four bellowed out loudly, before pointing his large club at Lyd challengingly.

“Are you two ready?” The announcer looked at both of the Xenos with an excited grin.

“Let’s go!” Lyd raised his shield and readied his sword.

“Bah!” Four nodded, taking his large club in two hands, ready to fight.

“BEGIN!!!” The announcer declared, and was quickly drowned out by the roar of the crowd as the two Xenos rushed towards each other as the fight began.

Bell marveled at the speed of the two Xenos as they exchanged blows. “They’re fast!”

“About Level 5, roughly?” Tiona estimated the strength of the two Xenos for Bell.

“Right about.” Tione agreed with her sister, the moves of the two Monsters looked similar to the speed that she and Tiona had fought with back when they’d last Leveled Up.

“Mm.” Ais’s golden eyes followed the fight, picking out openings, but also taking note of which Monsters was pushing the other back. “The Lizardman.”

Lefiya blinked, taking her eyes off the match to look at Ais. “Ais?”

“The Lizardman will win…if it uses its tail.” Ais explained, now having the attention of all of her friends.

Sure enough, after a clash of weapons, Lyd’s tail swiped one of Four’s legs out from under the Fomoire. The goat-like humanoid staggered a step, only to take a shield bash from Lyd and be knocked to the ground. The next instant and Lyd’s sword was pointed at Four’s neck.

“Shuah…” Four snorted out and yielded to Lyd.

“Good match.” Lyd chuckled to his friend.

“And we have our winner!” The announcer called out into his mic. “Give it up for Lyd!” The crowd burst into applause and cheers for the Lizardman.

Lyd helped Four up and the two walked off to the south gate together, both waving to the people as they left the field to make room for the next Xenos participants.

-Later-

Bell could honestly say that he was amazed at what he’d seen from Monsterphilia and the Xenos, so far. The aerial battle between Gros and Ray had been amazing, the two Monsters demonstrating advanced maneuvers and combat, all the while never touching the ground. Ray’s singing had also been superb, the Siren Xenos’s voice was melodic in an almost hypnotic way, everyone enjoying the songs and feeling relaxed.

The exception to that had been Ais, who had squeezed Bell’s hand a little tighter when the singing began. The swordswoman wouldn’t let herself relax and be taken in by the song. Bell had gently returned the squeeze and gave Ais a smile when she looked at him. The thankful smile that Ais had given him was cute and Bell was very happy that he’d gotten to see it.

“I think something’s going on.” Tione noticed the rushing members of Ganesha Familia that were heading to the top box where Ganesha presided over the events.

“You think something went wrong?” Tiona questioned as the Ganesha Familia members rushed back out of the top box even faster than they’d gone in.

“Oh? What’s this?! It seems Ray has volunteered to sing us one more song before we move on to our next event!” The announcer told the stadium at large with a big smile. The cheering from the audience proved that no one had any objections, though a few did wonder about the deviation from the printed schedule.

“Something has happened.” Ais stood up from her seat.

“Ais?” Lefiya blinked at seeing her idol’s serious face.

“Think we should go check it out?” Tiona also stood up.

“It couldn’t hurt.” Tione was already on her feet too.

“I’ll come with you.” Bell followed after the four Loki Familia members as they left the stands and headed for the stairs to leave the Amphitheatron.

-Orario Streets-

It hadn’t taken long for the Lokia Familia members to find out the situation from the Ganesha Familia. Apparently, some odd rumblings had been felt a short time ago not too far from the main area of the festival. Reports of a strange sound had followed, being heard coming up from the sewers. The Ganesha Familia had been doing a quick investigation already, while trying to contain any fear that Monsters had somehow escaped; since all of the Monsters that they’d brought from the Dungeon were still accounted for.

The five of them had headed off to the area where the reports had come from to check things out. The Ganesha Familia was thankful for the help, as they were already being stretched thin by the festival. But just before the group got to the location, the situation erupted.

Crack

BOOM

Dust was thrown into the air as the street cracked. A long sinuous body moved around as people yelled in panic and fear. The green skin looked scaly, like a snake, but the ‘head’ was weird, with no visible mouth, eyes, or features of any kind.

“Is that another new species?!” Tiona questioned loudly as none of the four Loki Familia members had ever seen a Monster like it.

“But the other new species were all the way down on the Fiftieth Floor!” Lefiya exclaimed, knowing that new species didn’t appear regularly, and that the vast space between the surface and Fiftieth Floor would be impossible for a Monster of this size to traverse without being noticed in one way or another.

“Ais, use your speed and get the civilians away from that thing!” Tione started giving out orders, having some training in leadership thanks to Finn making her a leader of small squads from time-to-time.

“Yes.” Ais nearly vanished as she blurred towards the people closest to the strange Monster. She grabbed the two people that were within the snake-like beast’s range and dashed away with them quickly.

“Lefiya, look for an opening and start casting!” Tione instructed the Mage.

“Y-Yes!” Lefiya agreed quickly.

“Bell, can you make a perimeter with your Magic?” Tone questioned him quickly.

“Yes!” Bell could use Earth Magic for that easily enough.

“Perimeter then, make sure no one else can enter this area as best as you can!” Tione gave him a role in this fight. ‘If this thing is from the Fiftieth Floor too, then even a strong Level 1 like Bell won’t stand a chance against it.’

“Gaaaahhh!” A Cat Man cried out as the ‘head’ of the Monster rushed towards him.

Tiona and Tione launched themselves off the nearby roof so hard that some of the tiles cracked. Both of the Amazons’ eyes nearly seemed to glow as they blurred towards the Monster; such was the intensity of their focus. As they blurred towards the strange new species, Tiona cocked back her left fist, while Tione cocked back her right.

Wham

The ‘head’ of the Monster shattered the street as the twin punches knocked it down. The Cat Man was grabbed by the swift form of Ais and removed from the area a second later.

“Nnnngh.” Tione hissed, raising her right arm above her head, gripping it with her left as her hand throbbed with pain.

“It’s so hard?!” Tiona was hopping in place, cradling her hand which was noticeably bruised.

“Punches aren’t going to get us anywhere!” Tione took up a stance anyway. “This thing is made to withstand blunt force!”

“Gahh! Why didn’t we bring weapons?!” Tiona questioned, only to remember that they’d been having a nice day at Monsterphilia before this; so weapons shouldn’t have been needed.

Rumble

The ground rose up into thick walls at every entry point to the small plaza that the Monster was in one after another. The Monster’s head whipped around at the Magic, seeming to be confused or attracted to it.

“Bell!” Tiona cheered at the effective perimeter that had been made.

“Unleashed pillar of light, limbs of the holy tree. You are the master archer. Loose your arrows, fairy archers. Pierce, arrow of accuracy.” Lefiya was nearly finished with her chant and the Monster hadn’t noticed her yet. She could take it out before it caused any further damage!

The Monster’s head snapped around and locked directly onto Lefiya.

Crack

The ground next to Lefiya’s feet broke and a green tentacle, or limb, perhaps a tail, slammed into the Elf’s side with a snapping sound. The limb shot up high into the air, sending Lefiya flying into an abandoned stall, collapsing the canvas and wood.

“That thing had a tail?!” Tione nearly cracked a tooth in anger at not having considered that before, trying to get to Lefiya’s side.

“Lefiya!” Tiona rushed towards their injured friend.

The ‘head’ of the weird Monster shuddered, nearly vibrating, for a second before it split and then burst open to reveal a flower with jaws similar to a humans. “ROOOOAAARRRR!!!” The weird Flower Monster roared, briefly revealing that its Magic Stone was attached to the roof of its mouth, as more vine-like limbs burst through the road and swung around.

“It…bloomed?” Tione looked confused by this new species now that it had revealed its true form.

“It’s not a snake…it’s a flower?!” Tiona exclaimed, dodging the rapidly flailing vines that were rising from the ground.

The flower Monster disregarded the Amazon sisters, turning its attention to the downed Lefiya. It slithered towards her, mouth opening, clearly intending to eat the Elf.

“Lefiya! Get up!” Tione called out a warning, trying to force her way through the wriggling vines.

“These damn things are in the way!” Tiona punched one of the vines, but even as it was knocked aside, she could tell that it hadn’t really been damaged.

Lefiya seemed to come to, trying to sit up proved to be the wrong move, however. “AAAAHHHH!!!” She cried out in agony, her hand going towards her injured side, clearly something was very wrong to make a Level 3 be nearly unable to move.

But even through the pain, Lefiya tried to get away from the Monster. As it came closer, even as the Elf continued to cry out from the searing pain of her injury, she never stopped trying to get away from it.

The Flower Monster’s head went flying through the air. A clean slice had separated the head from the long, sinuous body in a single strike. Lefiya felt a tear fall from her eye in shame at having to be saved by Ais, again.

‘Made it.’ Ais let out a breath that she didn’t know she was holding. ‘Pushed a little too hard though.’ She felt her body twinge in pain from blasting all the way back to the battlefield in one burst of Airel. “Lefiya?” She turned to check on her friend.

As if reacting to her presence, three more Flower Monsters burst from the ground, shrieking at Ais. Revealing that the other vines belonged to them and not the first Monster.

‘Three of them? That won’t be a problem!’ Ais was surrounded by her Wind Magic as it spun fiercely into a gale. She launched herself forward at the nearest Flower Monster.

Snap

Only for the rapier that she was using to break apart under the power of her Ariel.

‘The sword… This is its limit.’ Ais realized that she’d once again pushed a weapon too hard and destroyed it. She could already imagine Goibniu’s anger at her destroying the weapon that he’d loaned her while Desperate was being given maintenance. ‘I’m going to be yelled at again…’ She snapped out of her worries of the future as the nearest Flower Monster came at her with jaws wide open. With just the hilt and guard of the sword left, she wrapped it in wind and then hammered the Monster into the ground with it. She leapt away and the Flower followed after her at speed, targeting her exclusively. ‘Ariel alone isn’t strong enough to kill it?’

“Now they’re after Ais!” Tiona fought against the lashing vines that were keeping her and Tione from helping Ais. “We’re right here, damn it!” She yelled at the three Monsters.

“That’s it!” Tione figured out the Flower Monsters’ fixation. “It’s magical energy! Ais! They’re attracted to Magic!”

‘If that’s the case, then I can lead them away from Lefiya!’ Ais used her speed to dodge the three Monsters as they repeatedly came after her.

“Disrupt.” Bell incanted from a rooftop overlooking the battlefield. He formed a Kokushin in each hand, long enough to be used as a good baton. Thankfully, the three Flower Monsters were far too focused on Ais’s Magic to pick up on his. “Tiona, Tione!” He threw the batons to the Amazon sisters. “Catch!”

“Bell!” Tione caught the impromptu weapon with a smile.

“Nice one!” Tiona beamed at him as she caught her own baton and then slammed it into the nearest vine. The force of the blow slammed it into the others and left her a space to escape the entanglement.

“Take this you bastards!” Tione roared, smacking the flailing vines with her own baton as fast as she could, beating them into the ground.

“Raaah!” Two of the Flower Monsters briefly stopped their pursuit of Ais to direct their attention to the Amazons beating the hell out of their vine-like limbs.

“Here they come!” Tiona charged at the incoming Monsters.

“Bring it on!” Tione roared as she rushed to meet them head-on.

Woosh

A magical wind swirled around Tione and Tiona suddenly. The Flower Monster’s shrieked even louder at the sudden magical energy that was right in front of them. But their second of hesitation cost them, both of their heads being smashed into the ground by the batons wielded by the sisters.

Ais flew above the last of the three Flower Monsters, staying out of its reach, even as it lunged and snapped at her from below. She glared down at the new species that had hurt Lefiya, and went after her friends, her Familia! Ariel swirled around her and she struck the Flower Monster with the pommel of the broken sword again, sending it back down to crack the pavement once more.

“Miss Viridis! Miss Virdis!” Bell was at Lefiya’s side, snapping the Elf out of her pain (and shame) filled stupor. “We need Magic!”

“Ah…ugh…y-yes.” Lefiya felt her entire body nearly spasm in painful protest as she stood up, stubbornly refusing Bell’s assistance. A magical wind suddenly surrounded both Lefiya and Bell protectively. To Lefiya it was familiar and it brought just the barest hint of a smile to her face through the pain. “I am… Lefiya Viridis. An Elf of the Wishe Forest. I swore myself to the Goddess Loki. I am a member of the strongest, proudest Familia!” She leapt forward to get into position, regardless of the screaming pain within her body. ‘I cannot leave my most important person behind. I will not run away! I refuse!’

“Whoa?!” Tione was nearly grabbed from behind by one of the vines, but it smacked off the protective wind and retreated a few meters while the Flower Monster screeched.

“This new Skill of yours is awesome, Ais!” Tiona had just watched two vines bounce off her own protective wind. She completed her attack on the head of the Flower Monster with her baton, making it shriek in pain and anger.

Left unsaid was that they still weren’t making much progress in actually killing the Flower Monsters. And…each hit from the vines, noticeably weakened the protective wind swirling around them. Ais’s Sky Theatre Skill was not only new to her, but it wasn’t some infallible protection. It had its limits of how much it could block. At the moment, this first use of the Skill was buying time more than anything else.

“I wish upon the name of Wishe.” Lefiya began her incantation an orb of light appearing at the tip of each of her index fingers. She moved them through the air as her own Magic Circle glowed beneath her feet thanks to her Mage Developmental Ability. From the small glowing orbs upon her fingertips, magical script was written into the air. “Ancestors of the forest, proud brethren. Answer my call and descend on the plains. Connecting bonds, the pledge of paradise.” The circle of glowing script was almost complete as Lefiya turned back to face the Monsters. “Turn the wheel and dance. Come, ring of fairies. Please – Give me strength.” She brought her hand together in front of her and the two glowing orbs merged into one, the script in the air turning into a bright ring of light. “Elf Ring!” Bell was forced backwards from the sheer magical power that Lefiya was releasing, but his rubellite eyes watched all of this without blinking.

“Lefiya?!” Tione called out, feeling the intensity of Lefiya’s magic even from a distance.

“Oh wow!” Tiona blinked as her Flower Monster rushed towards Lefiya, completely ignoring her.

All three of the Flower Monsters lunged for Lefiya, slithering across the ground rapidly.

‘I am not afraid.’ Lefiya stared at the approaching Monsters unflinching. ‘Everyone is with me.’

“STAY DOWN!!!” Tiona and Tione roared as they and Ais were above the Monsters from behind. Each girl slammed their weapon into the head of one Flower Monster, cratering the pavement from the force of the blow.

‘They’ll protect me.’ Lefiya knew this to be true, more than anything. ‘And I will save them!’ The Elf declared to herself absolutely. “Harbinger of the end, the white snow.” Lefiya’s Magic Circle glowed brightly as it changed to match the color of Riveria’s. “Blow with the wind before the twilight. Closing light, the freezing land. Blizzard, the three severe winters - my name is Alf!” Lefiya held up her right hand as Ais, Tione, and Tiona leapt off the heads of the Flower Monsters letting them move again. “Wynn Fimbulvetr!”

“Raaahhh!!!” The three Flower Monster roared, but it was too late.

White.

Bell blinked, but all he saw for a moment was white.

The magical energy died down and other colors came into view.

“Incredible…” Bell could only stare at the mass of ice in front of Lefiya, all three of the Monsters were frozen like sculptures now.

“Nice one, Lefiya!” Tiona yelled out, coming down from their jump to get out of the way of the powerful spell.

“You’ve caused us enough trouble, you damn weeds!” Tione nearly growled at the frozen Monsters.

The two sisters landed easily on the ground before launching themselves at the ice. Tione and Tiona stomped hard on the ground right before they reached their target and raised their one of their legs high into the air in perfect synchronicity. They brought their heels down on the frozen Monsters and entire mass of ice shattered from the force of their combined axe kicks.

‘They’re so powerful!’ Bell thought as he saw the power of the Amazon twins on full display. ‘Flexible too…’ A different part of his brain filed that image away for later.

The remaining fragments of ice and frozen Monster were shredded into snow as Ais landed on them with Ariel going at full power. The magical wind threw the snow around, the sunlight sparkling off the white flakes made the girls look beautiful in Bell’s eyes as it floated around them.

“Thanks, Lefiya, you saved our butts!” Tiona hugged the Lefiya gently, aware of her injury.

“T-Tiona!” Lefiya was always a bit flustered by how physically affectionate the Amazon was.

“Thank you, Lefiya.” Ais smiled at her friend. “You looked just like Riveria…amazing.”

“Ais…” Lefiya flushed at the praise, especially being compared to Riveria, and the fact that it came from Ais! “Ais… May I… Go with you in the Dungeon?”

“…Sure. Let’s go anytime, Lefiya.” Ais grinned at the Elf.

“Okay!” Lefiya agreed, happy little tears at the corners of her eyes.

“Speaking of thanks…” Tiona turned to Bell with a warm smile. “Bell!” She nearly pounced on him. “Thanks for the weapons!” She wrapped him in a hug and nuzzled against him adorably.

“N-No problem, Tiona…” Bell replied, needing a second for his brain to kick in as Tiona pressed herself against him.

“We kinda broke them on that last hit though.” Tione showed Bell the broken half of a Kokushin that she picked up from the ground.

“No problem, I’m just glad that they were useful.” Bell smiled at her, only to blink as Tione also wrapped her arms around him, pressing herself flush against him from his other side.

“You helped out plenty.” Tione whispered into his ear. “You kept anyone else from entering the battle zone. You made weapons for us so that we could better deal with the Monsters. You even helped Lefiya get back on her feet.” She lightly kissed his neck. “You’ve more than proven yourself, Bell~” She purred into his ear so sexily that Bell could feel all the hair on his body rise in response.

“Mhm, you’re the best~’ Tiona agreed with a breathy tone just as sexy as her sisters as she left a kiss of her own on the opposite side of Bell’s neck.

“Um…” Ais spoke up, snapping the three out of their little bubble. “Thank you for your help, Bell.” She smiled brightly at him, pushing down the urge to pout at how close Tione and Tiona were, with their bodies pressed against Bell’s like that.

“Th-Thank you, Miss Ais…” Bell was able to reply properly as Tione and Tiona moved a step back from him (though both did so reluctantly).

Ais shook her head. “Ais.”

“Huh?” Bell blinked.

“Call me Ais.” Ais reiterated, her smile never wavering. “Everyone I’m close to calls me that. Does it bother you?” She asked him, a hint of worry creeping into her tone.

“Of course not, Ais.” Bell smiled back at her softly, and Ais felt the butterflies in her stomach again.

“Who put a wall here?!” Loki questioned, scrambling to try and climb over it after word had spread that Loki Familia Adventurers were fighting Monsters in the streets.

“Ah!” Bell realized that he’d left all of the walls that he’d raised with his Magic standing, blocking off all entry points into the plaza. “S-Sorry about! I’ll fix it right away!” He quickly went through a four hand signs (much to Lefiya’s interest and surprise) and then placed his palm on the ground. With a rumble, the walls all sank back into the ground, quickly looking as if they hadn’t been there at all.

“That’s better.” Loki grinned as she was now able to walk easily to her ‘children’ and look them over. “Lefiya, you’re injured! MEDIC!!!” The Trickster Goddess called out loudly (and a bit overdramatically), making one of the Guild employees that had come with her and the Ganesha Familia reinforcements rush over with a box containing High Potions.

Bell had no idea that he was about to be questioned for the next couple of hours by the Guild as they tried to figure out what was going on and how such Monsters got to the surface. But he did know one thing for sure after having witnessed Tione, Tion, Ais, and Lefiya in action.

‘I’ve still got a long way to go.’ Bell only further strengthened his resolve and drive to improve and become a Hero.

-The Next Day-

It was early morning and Bell was heading towards his normal meeting spot with Lili in front of Babel Tower, when he overheard raised voices. Looking towards the commotion, he had to move around a tall hedge row that was part of the decoration of the area around Babel, to find the source. He spotted Lili surrounded by a group of men. His natural protectiveness kicked in when one of the obvious Adventurers yelled at Lili harshly.

“Enough! Hand it over!” The thuggish-looking man barked at Lili.

“As usual…Lili gave you everything!” Lili raised her voice to be heard over the group. “Lili has given her Familia all the money she has! There isn’t a single Valis left!”

‘Members of Soma Familia?’ Bell recognized the sigil of the Familia after having gone over several of the more prominent ones in Orario, whether that was because of fame or infamy depended on the given Familia. “Lili!” He headed over without an ounce of hesitation.

“We know you’ve got more, Arde!” Another Soma Familia member roughly grabbed Lili’s backpack, dragging her backwards. “Make it easy on yourself and just hand it over!”

“Lili doesn’t have any Valis left!” Lili declared, struggling against the hold. “Kanu and his lackeys took everything the other night! Lili hasn’t been back into the Dungeon since!”

“We don’t believe you!” A third Adventurer nearly spat, getting into Lili’s face.

“Yeah, for someone that has no money, you sure don’t look to sad about it.” The fourth Adventurer sneered at the Prum.

“Lili doesn’t drink the soma wine anymore! She only needs money to leave the Familia, but you all keep taking it from her!” Lili retorted as the Adventurer holding her backpack tried to open it with one hand.

“What do you think you’re doing to my friend?” Bell questioned coldly, all of the Soma Familia Adventurers visibly flinched, whether it was from being caught shaking someone down, or from the tone was hard to tell.

“Shit, he startled me.” The first Adventurer looked at Bell annoyed.

“You hear what he called Arde?” The second man laughed.

“Friend?” The third guy laughed along with his buddy. “You must be stupid or something!”

“I wonder how much she’s stolen form this dumbass already without him even realizing it?” The final man nearly cackled at Bell’s perceived naïveté.

“M-Master Bell…” Lili could barely meet Bell’s eyes. Everything was coming out into the open now. Her profitable arrangement with Bell was going to come crashing down.

“Let go of Lili, now.” Bell’s sharp voice silenced the four men and made Lili look up at Bell in surprise. “I won’t ask again.”

“Well now, look who thinks he’s tough!” The first man mocked as he walked over to Bell. “Why don’t you mind your own damn business?” He reached out for Bell, but then felt a painful grip on his wrist, nearly crushing it. The next thing the man knew he was on his knees with his arm painfully wrenched back, overextending his shoulder. “Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!” The Soma Familia member cried out as he heard his bones and joints popping.

“Let go of Lili.” Bell’s voice made it abundantly clear that this was an order now.

One of the men took a quick step forward, his fist cocked back. “You son of a bitch!” He didn’t seem to take into account that Bell was restraining his buddy with only one hand. “Gkh!” Bell’s fist broke his nose, sending blood flying, and the man hit the grass unconscious.

“Oh, shit…” The third Adventurer seemed to realize that things weren’t going their way anymore.

“Get him off of me, damn it!” The restrained Adventurer demanded of his fellow Familia members.

Bam

He hit the grass unconscious too, after a punch to the back of the head from Bell.

“Hey, hey! We’re cool, man! We’re cool!” The fourth guy let go of Lili’s backpack and raised his hands into the air.

“Y-Yeah…this, this was just Familia business!” The third guy spoke up. “You shouldn’t have gotten involved, you know?”

“Lili, get behind me.” Bell smiled at Lili.

Lili was surprised when she found herself moving without thinking about it. She was standing behind Bell a second later, actually feeling safe from the thugs that made up a good chunk of her Familia.

“We let her go, we’re good now, right?” The man that had been trying to steal from Lili gave a very strained smile.

“Y-Yeah, we did what you said.” The other Adventurer nodded.

“Lili, how likely are they to cause problems if we leave right now?” Bell asked Lili without taking his eyes off the two Soma Familia men.

“Very likely, Master Bell.” Lili replied and watched with some hidden glee as the two thugs’ eyes went wide.

No more words were said.

One moment the two thugs were about to panic, the next they were both falling to the ground unconscious. One to a similar punch as the first guy to have been knocked out, the second to a brutal roundhouse kick to the face.

“Lili,” Bell looked at his Supporter.

“Yes…Master Bell?” Lili didn’t want to meet his eyes. She knew he was going to ask what they meant about her stealing. That ball of self-loathing had been building bit-by-bit everyday that she’d worked with Bell and taken a Drop Item (or multiple Drop Items) from him for her own gain. Now, when everything was about to come out, she found herself not wanting to lose this time that they’d had together.

“Are you okay?” Bell asked softly, concern for her in his voice.

“Huh?” Lili looked up at Bell out of pure shock. “What?”

“Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” Bell asked again, wanting to make sure that she was alright.

“N-No, Master Bell, Lili isn’t hurt.” Lili shook her head, still trying to process the lack of accusation or any harsh words.

“Good, I’m glad.” Bell sighed in relief, and to Lili’s further surprise, he pulled her into a hug.

“M-Master Bell?” Lili looked up at him confused. “Why?”

“Why what?” Bell asked for clarification.

“Why did you do this?” Lili spoke a little louder this time. “Why did you help Lili? Why didn’t you ask her about what they said?”

“Why would I care what they said?” Bell answered her question with his own.

“Did you really not notice this whole time?” Lili looked into his rubellite eyes. “Every single day that Lili worked as your Supporter, she stole from you! Even when you split the Dungeon loot with her fifty-fifty, she still stole Drop Items when you didn’t see them!” The Prum was on a roll now. “I’ve been taking advantage of you and your kindness from day one!” Lili’s voice continued to rise. “Don’t you understand?!” She placed her hand on her chest. “Lili’s a bad person! Lili’s a piece of shit Prum that scammed you and lied over and over!” She was almost yelling at this point, that ball of self-loathing going off like a bomb in her chest. “Even after hearing that Lili is a thief, Master Bell still helped her?!”

“Yes?” Bell nodded with wide eyes, not expecting this outburst at all.

“Why?!” Lili demanded, not feeling like she deserved his kindness.

“Because you’re Lili.” Bell replied as he gently put his hand on top of her head, patting it softly over her hood.

“Eh…” Lili’s eyes were wide at the show of affection.

“I wanted to help you, Lili.” Bell gave her a warm look as he continued to gently pat her head. “I told you before, remember? I want you to keep being my Supporter in the future. Even when we go to the Middle Levels, or deeper into the Dungeon.” He saw Lili’s eyes begin to tear up. “I don’t need a reason to help you, Lili.”

“M-Master Bell…” Lili felt the first tear roll down her cheek. Her hand came up to wipe it away, but more were coming.

“Lili…talk to me if you’re in trouble.” Bell smiled softly at her, wiping another tear away for her. “I’ll do whatever I can to help you, so feel free to tell me.”

“I-I’m…sorry…” Lili’s tears couldn’t be stopped now.

“I’m not going to leave you, Lili.” Bell promised her then and there.

“So…s-sorry, Master Bell!” Lili threw her arms around him and hugged him for all she was worth, not caring that his armor was in the way. Bell returned the hug, putting all of his care and affection for Lili into it. Lili finally cried for the first time in years. Letting out all the sadness, pain, and self-loathing that had built up into the embrace of the first person to genuinely care about her that she could remember. Someone that truly wanted her in his life. Through it all, Bell held her close and reassured her that everything was going to be okay.

“Come with me, Lili.” Bell took her hand and led her away from Babel Tower and the Dungeon.

“Where are we going, Master Bell?” Lili cleared her eyes enough to see as her tears calmed down into sniffles.

“To my Familia’s Home.” Bell smiled at her as they walked. “Lord Sarutahiko will know what to do.”

“But Master Bell, the Soma Familia will cause you so much trouble over this!” Lili worried about what would happen if this situation got even bigger.

“Don’t worry about that, Lili.” Bell shook his head. “You’re not going back there. Never again.” His words were reassuring, but with an undertone that promised violence would be used if someone tried to force the issue.

-Floating Bridge Mansion-

The introduction of Lili to Sarutahiko had been polite, but quick. Bell moving on to explain the situation as best as he could. Lili, when asked by Sarutahiko about her situation, knew that she couldn’t lie to a Deity, and so she’d just let everything out. Her entire life, from her first memory, which was of being alone, through her years in the Soma Familia as a Supporter, being mistreated at every turn. Kicked around, stolen from, laughed at, and left with next to nothing in her life except whatever she could scrape together. It was a rush of emotions and venting that Sarutahiko took in calmly and patiently.

“You’ve had it very rough, Liliruca Arde.” Sarutahiko commented once Lili was finished, the Prum girl breathing heavily after getting a literal life’s worth of misery and loneliness off of her chest. “I will send a letter to Soma, personally. If he refuses to work this out rationally and with words, then we will take other paths to get you out of that Familia.”

“Thank you very much, Lord Sarutahiko.” Bell bowed low to his God, his forehead touching the tatami mat floor.

“You are a good man, Bell, it’s one of the reasons that I offered you a place in my Familia.” Sarutahiko chuckled at the young man. “You may stay with us until this matter is settled, Liliruca. If you need to leave, or want to go out, please take Bell with you.”

“I can still work as Master Bell’s Supporter then.” Lili offered immediately, not having expected such generosity from Sarutahiko ­­­Ōkami after dealing with the apathetic Soma for her entire life. “I don’t want to be a burden to him.”

“Lili, you’re never a burden.” Bell assured her with a soft smile. “You’ve always helped me out in the Dungeon.”

“Lili will do even better, Master Bell!” Lili promised as she looked at him, her brown eyes filled with determination. She wanted so badly to make up for stealing from him and being dishonest the whole time they’d known each other so far.

“Then we’ll keep going into the Dungeon, I guess.” Bell chuckled, not minding in the slightest since it meant that he could grow stronger in case things with the Soma Familia did get worse.

-Soma Familia Home ~ Back Room-

“Your saying Arde’s newest mark did this to you?” A Raccoon Man asked the four Adventurers that had accosted Lili in the morning.

He was a middle-aged man, with a scruffy appearance. He had dark brown hair and matching eyes. His clothing was all rugged; a pair of blue workmen’s pants, a white t-shirt with a dull yellow vest over it, a dark brown cloak over his shoulders kept together by the single pauldron on his left shoulder. On his belt were a few pouches for items and on his hip was a machete-like blade.

“That’s right, Kanu!” The man that had gotten his nose broken first spoke up. His nose still a little crooked after he’s moved it back into place.

“He had to be a Level 2! He beat us all so easily!” The man who’d been knocked out with the punch to the back of the head complained.

“Level 2, huh? That’s tricky.” Kanu hummed, not wanting to risk his own life at all. “We’ll have to make a strategy, or catch Arde when she’s alone.”

“Shouldn’t we tell Captain Zanis about this?” The other man that had his nose broken asked. “If that guy’s a Level 2, we need a Level 2 on our side.”

“Hell no we don’t tell him, you idiot!” Kanu scoffed at the other man. “If Arde’s been stealing from a Level 2, she’s got to have a ton of cash hidden away somewhere! If we tell Zanis, then who do you think will be getting all that money, huh?”

“Right…” The man replied. They all knew how greedy their Captain was.

“But if we get on this guy’s bad side, what do we do then?” The last Adventurer asked, his face still slightly swollen from the kick he’d taken to the head.

“If we fail, then we tell Zanis. But we do it smart!” Kanu explained with a grimace, clearly not wanting to involve the Captain of their Familia. “The contingency plan is this: Arde misses the monthly quota check. Then, since we’ll know where she’ll be, we’ll be the ones that tell Zanis where she is and we’ll get the bonus for finding her again.”

The five men chuckled at that. Lili had tried to escape and disappear from the Familia multiple times in the past. But they always found her, and they made sure to trash whatever place that she’d holed up in.

“Now, which one of you is going to keep watch for Arde near the Dungeon, starting tomorrow morning? We’ll do shifts so that we can follow her back to whatever Familia this guy is from.”

Had Kanu and the other members of Soma Familia not been a bunch of deadbeat alcoholics, they may have paid a bit more attention to the recent news within Orario. If that had been the case, they probably would’ve recognized Bell from his description as the Level 1 that had killed a Minotaur singlehandedly. Unfortunately, for them, that wasn’t the kind of people that they were.

They could never have predicted what their greed and desire for the divine wine brewed by their Patron God would bring upon their Familia.

-End Chapter-

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Protect Da Bean! *Snuggles and Head Pats for Lili*

Soma Familia is gonna learn how to ‘dance’ soon…the Uchiha Madara way!

Bell ends up enjoying Monsterphilia with Ais, Tione, and Tiona! A nice random date since they ran into each other! So cute!

The Xenos are already on the surface too! I LIKE my version of events for them, because it makes WAY more since that literal Gods would know how to spin a tale of half-truths to promote the slow integration of the Xenos onto the surface, rather than try and keep it all hush-hush and expect things to just work out.

But Bell was there for the fight against the Violas at the festival! He didn’t fight directly, so no Excelia Gain for him…but he DID get a show of the true power of higher Level Adventurers! That only further increases his desire and determination to reach his goals!

What’s next for Monstrous Talent Bell?

Keep reading to find out!

Let me know what you thought!

Until next time, later!