Chapter I

Hello, and greetings, everyone! I am here with yet another new story, but this is actually new. Somewhat. The story of the Worldly Adventurer! Anyway, it is a crossover, as always, mainly of Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon and Dragonar Academy, with others, and a harem story, as usual. The main character this time around is Bell Cranel. As per usual, Bakuto Masaki is along for the ride. So without further ado, away we go!


A boy with short, messy, silver-white hair and ruby red eyes, wearing a playing, black and beige outfit with scant armor overtop ran through the streets of a busy city with great excitement. 'Oh this is great! I finally did it!' He grinned as he ran down a side street, into an old, rundown church, and into a small door at the back of the main hall leading into a room at the bottom of a set of stairs and burst into the room. "Goddess!"

"Huh? Bell?" questioned a girl with long, glossy black hair tied in twintails with weak blue ties, bright sapphire blue eyes, wearing an extremely tight, very short, white dress with a blue ribbon looped around her arms, back and waist, long white gloves, and white sandals, though what stood out most was, despite her childish appearance overall, were her voluptuous breasts, held aloft by the ribbon, as she sat on a stool. "And I thought I asked you to call me Hestia."

Ignoring her, Bell ran up to her with excitement. "Goddess, Goddess! I did it!"

Deciding not to press the issue, Hestia just sighed and continued the conversation. "Did what?"

"I did it! I killed a Goblin!"

Hestia blinked a few times, as if waiting for something. "… A Goblin?"

Bell nodded with energy. "Yep! One almost killed me when I was a little, but this time I won!"

"A Goblin?" she repeated.

Bell nodded, though slightly slower as he noticed her expression.

"You killed a Goblin? The weakest enemy in the Dungeon?"

Bell winced slightly and nodded slowly. "… Y – Yes…"

"And ran all the way back here to tell me?"

Bell stood up from where he was, his face lowered as he turned around. "… I'm sorry to bother you."

Hestia blinked in confusion before suddenly getting up to chase him. "Huh? Wait, Bell, I didn't mean it like –!" unfortunately he had already left. "Bell!"


Bell made his way back to the main road and towards the center of town, upon which sat a massive, white tower reaching into the sky, then made his way into the base of the tower, a large room with many doors, people of various races coming and going from them like a sea, Bell choosing one and going in, crawling down a ladder, and into an earthen tunnel beneath, leading into the massive labyrinth beneath the city, the Dungeon.

Bell breathed a heavy sigh as he walked through the tunnel into the main shaft of the Dungeon. "I guess she's right… I shouldn't have gotten so excited… It's not a great accomplishment at all." Shaking his head and pumping a fist with determination, he said to himself, "Right… so I need to kill some more Monsters and collect their… what was it called? Magic Stones." He stopped when he spotted such a Monster ahead of him, a wolf-like humanoid with fur along its back. "That's… a Kobold, I think." He pulled a small dagger from its sheath on his back and rushed at the beast.

Unfortunately his footsteps were heavy and graceless enough the beast heard him and dodged his swipe, huffing in what he swore was a laugh, before taking a swing at him with the leg bone in its grip.

"Hold still!" he growled, narrowly side-stepping its attack and hacking at its arm, hitting just the right spot to dislocate and sever the arm at the elbow.

The beast howled in pain and ran off, trailing blood along the ground as it did.

"Get back here!" he shouted before pursuing it, following it around a corner and suddenly finding his vision obscured as his head was sandwiched in wonderful softness.

A tall, beautiful woman with long, knee-length blonde hair, and bright blue eyes wearing scant white armor that more closely resembled a swimsuit than armor, save for a heavy collar around her neck, a cape along her back, and a massive sword slung over shoulders, looked down to notice the silver-haired boy stuck and struggling in her vast cleavage.

Planting his hands firmly, Bell gasped as he pushed himself free of the would-be trap and gasped deeply.

"Are you alright?" the blonde asked.

"Y – Yeah… I'm fine…" he sighed before noticing someone next to the blonde, an equally tall, dark-skinned woman with long, wild brown hair that reached her plump ass, and dark blue eyes wearing thigh-high black boots with grey accents, a very low-cut yellow dress that showed almost all of her immense bust, a huge hammer with spikes slung across her back.

The blonde nodded appreciatively. "I see. Good to know."

The dark-skinned woman, however, smirked with amusement. "What a brave little rabbit. Fondling Ver like that."

Bell blinked in confusion before realizing his hands had been, and still were, planted firmly on the blonde's soft globes. He paled and leapt back, bowing deeply. "I'M SORRY!"

The blonde tilted her head in confusion. "For what?"

Bell looked up at her in bewilderment. "… H – Huh…?"

"What are you apologizing for?"

He stood up straight and looked at her in bewilderment. "I – I just… your…"

The busty blonde tilted her head in confusion, before her companion waved a hand dismissively. "Ah don't worry Little Rabbit. Ver here doesn't get mad over accidental boob groping."

Bell did not know whether to sigh in relief or concern. "… A – Ah… wait, who are you?"

The blonde introduced herself first. "My name is Veronica Lautreamont."

The brunette added, "I'm Mulkula, and I'm her bodyguard or partner, depends on who you ask, she's perfectly capable of defending herself."

Bell blinked and looked at the tall blonde, the massive sword strapped to her back. "Why would you need a bodyguard?"

Veronica took a moment to answer. "… No reason."

Bell was even more confused.

She decided to change the subject. "So, what are you doing here?"

Bell shook his head and focused back on what was around him. "I – I'm an Adventurer. Sort of. This is my first day in the Dungeon."

Veronica frowned in disappointment. "Ah. I see. Then I assume you have one of those Falna curses?"

"Don't you mean blessings?"

"I mean what I said."

His bewilderment over the two women in front of him was growing stronger. "I… see. Anyway, yes, I have a Falna. I'm part of the Hestia Familia. It's only member, actually…"

The until now flat-expressioned Mulkula smirked slightly. "So it's you and a Goddess all alone together?"

"Yes…?" he answered, confused.

"How much fun you have with her every night?"

Bell tilted his head before shrugging and answering the best he could. "We're usually pretty tired, so not much, I guess."

"Oh? You two tire yourselves out so fast huh?"

"Yeah. We don't get a lot of time at home each night."

Mulkula frowned before sighing in disappointment. "… I get the feeling we're not talking about the same thing."

"What are you talking about?"

"Sex," she answered bluntly, causing Bell's face to become an even deeper red than his ruby eyes.

"What!? I – I – I'd never do something like that with the Goddess! I've never even done it before with anyone…!"

Mulkula frowned even more. "… Hey, kid, how old are you?"

"Huh? Um… fourteen, why?"

"… Eh? What's such a little tyke doing in the Dungeon?"

Bell frowned as his brow lowered somberly. "My Aunt Palu died a few weeks ago, and I couldn't tend her farm by myself. So I came here. And I always loved hearing her talk about Orario and its Adventurers."

"Hunters are superior," Veronica retorted.

Bell just stared at her in confusion. "What's a Hunter?"

The blonde frowned in disappointed annoyance. "… What?"

Mulkula turned to her blonde companion. "Ver, I think we should save this Little Rabbit from being fooled."

"I don't see how it involves us."

"I don't see how it involves us."

"Aw, come on…"

"If you bring him along he's your responsibility."

"Right!"

Bell just tilted his head in confusion.


Outside the Dungeon, Bell just sat in bewilderment as Mulkula dragged him out by his arm. "Come on Little Rabbit!"

"I – I need to hunt in the Dungeon for Magic Stones!" he protested.

"Those things give very little money, Little Rabbit."

"But it's the only choice I have!"

"See, Ver? This kid needs a lot of help."

"I can see that, I just don't see what it has to do with us."

"Let… go!" Bell protested before ripping his arm away from Mulkula, though she kept his sleeve.

Veronica's eyes widened when she saw the large, winding, snaking tattoo going up Bell's entire arm, which immediately grabbed.

"H – Hey!"

"This mark… where did you get it?"

"Huh? I… don't really remember. Why?"

"This is a Starbrand. And a highly unusual one."

"A what?"

Veronica then stood up straight and turned to Mulkula. "You have some impeccable luck."

The dark-skinned woman tilted her head curiously.

"We'll be taking you with us for a bit," Veronica explained to a now very worried Bell.

"Great…"


Bell frowned as he followed the two. "Why are we heading outside the city…?"

"Collecting, Rabbit," Mulkula answered.

"Collecting… what?"

"The expensive stuff," Mulkula replied.

Veronica looked around in thought. "Hm… where would be good…?"

Bell tried to sneak away while the two looked around, but before he could, Veronica grabbed him by the collar.

"This way," she declared as she dragged him. "A good prey should be over here."

Bell groaned as he struggled in her grasp. "That's fine but why am I coming…?"

"To show you what a Hunter is."

He stopped struggling at that and looked up at her in surprise.

Mulkula walked beside her with her arms folded. "So we're hunting a Barroth I take it?"

Veronica nodded in return. "Yes. While I would prefer tracking down a Rath, I'm not sure Bell would survive the journey."

The boy's face went as white as his hair.

Mulkula groaned in annoyance. "Great… Gonna end up getting mud everywhere."

"Can someone please explain what's going on…?"

"Explain what?"

"What we're doing, where we're going, what a Barroth is! Anything!?"

Veronica stopped and dropped him, staring at him in disappointment. "… You really don't know much of anything."

Mulkula decided to explain. "We're showing you what Hunters do. We're heading to an area Barroths frequent." She pointed over a hill to a large mud pit, in the middle of which was a massive, reptilian behemoth covered in scales that resembled stone.

"I – It's huge!" the boy shouted.

Veronica looked over the beast from afar. "Hm… it looks a bit small."

Bell's face went white. "Huh?! But it's over ten meders tall!"

"Most are about seventeen."

"Hah!?"

Grabbing the hilt of her sword, Veronica urged, "Just stay here and watch. You should be safe from its rocks at this distance."

"Yeah," Mulkula answered before pulling the massive hammer over back and wielding it with one hand.

Bell gaped, but his eyes went even wider when drawing their weapons exposed the women's backs, and he realized they were completely bare, not covered in the tattoo-like Falna all Adventurers have. "Wh – What the…?"

"I assume you know that plan?" Veronica asked.

Mulkula huffed as she slammed the head of her hammer into the ground. "Duh, we've killed a few before."

Without another word, Veronica shot forward like lighting towards the Barroth, getting its attention from its mud rolling as she slammed her sword down on one the holes atop its crown-like head.

The beast howled in pain and tried to swing its head at Veronica, who easily dodged.

Seeing her cue, Mulkula slammed the hammer down in front of her, the momentum sending her flying into the air, flipping several times before she swung the hammer down, smashing it firmly on the Barroth's head, cracking its crest and embedding it in the ground.

The beast growled and swung its tail up to try and crush her but she jumped back, causing the Barroth to smash itself in the head, after which it stood up, dazed and dizzy.

Veronica rushed forward and raised her sword, slicing open the beast's neck, blood spraying everywhere as it gurgled on its own fluids before collapsing, dead.

Bell gaped in awe as the beast collapsed, Veronica and Mulkula seemingly not even fatigued. "Wh – Whoa…" After a moment, he noticed that beast's body was lying there still. "Um… shouldn't it have dissolved by now?"

Veronica shook her head as she approached the corpse. "No. Only those frail creatures you call Monsters do that. These are true Monsters," she explained as she swung her sword, cutting off its tail. "And they are a force of nature itself, not like those pitiful beasts you find in that Dungeon."

Bell frowned in confusion as Veronica continued cutting up the body. "If you hate it so much, why were you there?"

"My sister needed some Drop Items from the Sixtieth Floor," she answered as she cut off chunks of its hide.

"Your sister?"

"Yes, Cassandra Lautreamont, she runs the Guild."

"Ah. Wait, WHAT!?"

"What?" she asked as she ripped out one of its teeth.

"Your sister runs the Guild!?"

"Of course. Who else?"

"I thought it was run by a God…"

Veronica just huffed as she gathered more pieces of the Barroth. "No God would be stupid enough to think of trying that."

"Trying what…?"

Changing the subject as she leaned on her hammer, Mulkula questioned, "So, what'd you think?"

Bell frowned in thought for a moment. "How are you able to do all that?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't have any Falna. Humans aren't strong enough to fight Monsters without it."

Veronica sighed as she stood up. "Another lie you've been fed. Humans do not need the gods. We've done just fine for thousands of years without them. On the contrary, they need us."

He blinked in bewilderment.

"Gods and Goddesses are sustained by the faith and worship mortals provide them. Since they're not in their immortal world anymore, they use the Falna. They grant mortals slightly increased power, but in return they have influence over how powerful that mortal can get, what they can actually do, and they feed off the mortal's life force. It's only good for those that have no real power beforehand. But those that actually have power that get a Falna instantly loose that strength. Because the Falna starts everyone at the same starting point, meaning while weak are brought up, the strong are held back. Plus, it's a crutch. Anything achieved with a Falna wasn't achieved on your own, but with the power of one of those Gods behind you. And all of the Abilities that Adventurers 'learn' are ones that are tied to said Gods. So unless the God your serving has a predilection for a certain skill, you will never learn it no matter how hard you try."

Mulkula twisted the handle of her hammer and pulled it out to reveal a long blade and began removing he Barroth's crown. "So who's your Goddess, Little Rabbit?"

"Hestia…"

Veronica frowned in thought. "Goddess of the Home and Hearth. Not one suited for combat at all."

"… Don't…"

"Hm?"

"Don't insult her like that! She was the only one who would accept me… I tried so many Familias… and they all threw me out…"

"Right… and my saying she's not a Goddess suited for combat insults her… how?"

Bell stiffened and just remained silent.

"It just means that you shouldn't expect too much in the way of combat prowess from her Familia unless you're already inclined to that field."

"O – Oh…"

Veronica sighed as she and Mulkula packed up the last few pieces of Barroth parts. "There. That's all of the pieces we can use. Now to drop off the hides and bones to the Hephaestus Familia and the meat to a restaurant."

Bell frowned in confusion. "What about the Magic Stone?"

"Beasts like this generally don't have one. Their hides, bones, and meat are what's valuable. Since they don't evaporate when killed, their meat can be used to cook, and their hides and bones can be used to make tools, weapons, and armor. Most of the people inside of Orario aren't aware of this since they rarely venture outside the city, and are only concerned with the Dungeon. Killing one Beast would give you more money than an entire day in the Dungeon's upper levels."

"Yep," Mulkula added as she sheathed her blade back into the hammer's handle. "Though the more powerful Beasts are where the real Vals are at. Though you usually want a party of at least four people to take them on."

"I – I see…"

"Especially Azure Ratholos. Those things are fiercer than any Wyrm, aside from some of the strongest Maestros."

Bell frowned in confusion. "Maestros?"

"Nothing you need concern yourself with for now."

"Right…" he muttered with a frown before changing the subject. "Can I ask you something?"

"Only if you can ask and walk at the same time."

Following the two, he continued. "Why are you two helping me? I don't even know you."

Veronica stopped momentarily before glancing back at him. "… You remind me of someone."

"I… see?"

"Good that you do."

Bell sighed before realizing that the sun was going down and paled. "Crap! It's almost dark and I didn't get anything from the Dungeon…!"

The two women glanced back at him in thought.

"I didn't earn any money…!"

Mulkula raised an eyebrow in thought. "Did you think we would keep all the Vals for ourselves?"

He stuttered in confusion before Veronica dropped a small satchel in his hand. Looking in it, his eyes went wide as it held several gold coins inside. "Th – These are… hundred Val coins…! Wh – Why?"

"Why what?" the blonde retorted as the group walked.

"Why'd you give me this? I didn't do anything…"

Mulkula sighed before scratching her head in thought. "Eh. Just consider it her way of saying sorry for dragging you out. I consider it a way to show you just how much Hunters make compared to Adventurers."

"R – Right…"


Making his way back to the old church, Hestia looked at the pile of gold coins in awe. "Whoa! Bell, this is amazing! This is over fifteen hundred Vals!" However, her excitement immediately gave way to terror as her mind spun stories of insanity. "… You didn't…"

Bell just looked at her in confusion. "Didn't what?"

Hestia rushed to his side immediately with a stern expression on her face. "Did you meet any strange women today?"

Thinking back to Veronica and Mulkula, strange was certainly one way he would describe them. "Um… yeah, kinda."

Hestia's fear heightened. "… Did they do anything weird to you?"

"… How did you…?"

Her skin went even paler than normal.

"Goddess? How did you know they took me outside the city?"

Without a second thought, Hestia hugged him tightly with tears in her eyes.

Bell went stiff as he was not expecting a hug, plus the soft pillows pressing against his chest.

She urged with tears, "I'm so sorry you had to go through that, Bell."

Bell blinked and looked down at her in growing bewilderment. "Eh? What are you talking about…?"

"What those women did to you!" she cried out.

"All they did was take me outside of town and showed me what Hunters do."

Hestia's tears stopped as she looked up at Bell with a flat expression. "… Eh?" After a moment she put distance between herself and Bell, her face a vibrantly growing red.

"G – Goddess…?"

"Y – Yes!?" she stammered loudly.

"Are you okay, Goddess?"

"J – Just fine!"

"I – If you say so…" Changing the subject, he looked down at the small pile of gold coins. "Anyway, this is a lot of Vals. I think."

"It is…" Hestia remarked, sighing in relief as the tension in the air lifted.

Bell then looked to Hestia in thought. "Hey, Goddess, have you ever heard of Hunters before?"

Hestia blinked a couple times before putting a hand on her chin in deep thought. "Hm… I think so… I overheard Hephaestus talking about them before… Why?"

"Veronica said Hunters are more powerful than Adventurers," he answered, after which Hestia went suddenly silent. "Um… Goddess? Are you okay?"

"Fine," she bit back.

He then realized her twintails were twitching furiously and decided she was upset about something. "I'm… going to put the money away."


The next morning, Bell sighed as he made his way to the Dungeon with a heavy step. "Why was the Goddess so mad this morning…?" He stopped when he saw Mulkula sitting by the large fountain in front of the Dungeon's entrance. "… Oh boy…"

Seeing him, Mulkula waved with a smirk, her orbs swaying bountifully with each movement. "Yo! Little Rabbit! Had a feeling you'd be here today!"

Bell gulped as he walked up to her. "Are we heading out again…?" he asked with worry.

Mulkula waved his question off. "Nah, I just wanted to see how you do your 'Adventurer' thing."

"Um… okay?"

"Basically, I'm gunna follow you into the Dungeon and just watch, maybe bail ya out if you get in over yer head."

Bell just nodded slowly.

"So just try and pretend like a busty Amazon isn't following you, 'kay?"

"R – Right…"

"Now let's get going, Little Rabbit!"


Inside the Dungeon, Mulkula hung back around a corner as Bell faced down a couple Kobolds.

Bell clumsily dodged the swipe of the first before thrusting his dagger, only for the second Kobold to smack him in the arm.

She frowned as she watched him. 'He needs to work on his situational awareness.'

He took a swing at the first Kobold, but his dagger's reach was too small and he missed, so he swung his leg out and just kicked it instead.

'He needs a weapon with much longer reach than that. He's more fit for a shortsword.'

Bell growled as the second Kobold's makeshift bone weapon smacked him in the arm and stabbed at it, digging his knife into the beast's hand before backhanding it hard, snapping its neck, only for the first Kobold to slash at him from behind.

She sighed in exasperation. 'And he needs to make sure that when an opponent's down, it stays down.'

He thrust his dagger at the Kobold, snagged his foot on a rock and tripped, though his blade still managed to sink into the Monster's chest, killing it.

Mulkula slapped a hand over her face in disbelief. 'That win was from sheer luck. Geez… whoever raised him did a horrible job at combat.'

Bell sighed as he picked up the slain Monster's Magic Stones and looked around. "That was close…" He frowned in thought as he looked at the pathways surrounding him. "Okay… I came from that way, so I'll go… that way," he decided before heading off in that direction.

His dark-skinned observer just watched in frustration. 'He doesn't even have a good sense of tracking. It's going to take a lot of work to turn him into a Hunter…'


Mulkula walked up to Bell as he picked up the spoils of a battle with a small group of Goblins and smacked him on the head. "If I'd been anything big and hungry, you'd be lunch."

Bell just pouted as he stuffed the small purple crystals in a pouch on his waist.

"Say, Little Rabbit, who taught you to fight?"

He blinked in thought at her question. "Huh? No one."

Mulkula was so surprised she almost wanted to laugh. "… No one?"

Bell tilted his head in confusion. "Um… yeah, why?"

The woman sighed heavily. "Well that explains a lot."

Bell was even more confused.

"Nothing. Just keep going, I've seen what I need to, so just don't get yourself killed while I'm gone."

"Okay…?"


"Well?" Veronica questioned as she sat in a large bath, Mulkula walking up behind her.

Sighing, the woman reported, "I've got bad news and I've got worse news."

Veronica sighed heavily.

"His combat skills are atrocious. He has no sense of awareness, his reflexes are made for a weapon larger than what he's got, and he doesn't know to double-tap opponents. He also doesn't have a proper tracking mind. And to make matters worse, he's never been trained to fight. By anyone. Ever. He seems to have some good instincts buried in there, but the dagger he uses is too short to make use of them."

Veronica furrowed her brow in thought. "Hm… I see…" Quietly, she said to herself, "He must have had his memories wiped at some point."

"You say something, Ver?"

"No, it's nothing," she answered before standing out of the bath. "For now, leave him to his own devices, I need to decide how to proceed."

Mulkula frowned slightly in thought. "Ya know, I'm sticking with the Little Rabbit because he's just as cute as hell, why do you care so much about him? After you saw that tattoo thing you changed."

"… It's not a tattoo."

The dark-skinned beauty looked at her, confused.

"It's called a Starbrand. A unique mark given out by Naga, the Mother Dragon. It plants the soul of a dragon inside the body of a mortal to one day be born, and act as their partner and steed, called a Pal. That boy's is one completely unique from any other."

"Really?"

"And far larger than most as well."

Mulkula grinned with interest. "Neat. Cute and special."

"Indeed," Veronica remarked before looking around. "Now, where did Primrose put my armor?"


Bell frowned as he traded in the Magic Stones he had collected, and received a sum of seventy-five Vals in return. "So little… I guess Hunters really do make more…" Sighing somberly, he walked down the street, before becoming momentarily distracted by a shop nearby with a large assortment of weapons, tools, and armor inside, his eyes locked on a single shortsword, though seeing the price caused his heart to sink. "Maybe some day…" As he continued walking, he furrowed his brow in thought. "I wonder if I'll see them again tomorrow…"


Nearby, Hestia watched from around the corner as Bell looked inside the window of the shop. She frowned in thought before smirking. 'Finally, my chance to apologize to Bell and do something truly goddess worthy!' However, her face went white when she approached the storefront and saw the price on the shortsword he had been eying. 'I can't afford that! Damn it…!' She just sighed and began walking back to the church, stopping when she noticed a clothing store with a pair of hair ties inside shaped like flowers with bells on them. However, she shook her head and slapped her cheeks softly. 'No, I can't! If I can't even afford to give Bell something he needs, I can't afford to get something like that!'

As she walked away, however, Bell walked up to the shop and looked at the same hair ties, the tag on them reading a cost of thirty-five thousand Vals. "… I need to find those two…"


The next day, Bell sighed as he walked into the large building housing the Guild when he was approached by a young woman with short, straight-cut brown hair, bright green eyes, and pointed ears, wearing a very formal suit that still managed to show her curves. "Huh? Miss Eina?"

"I've been hearing rumors you were out of the city the other day with Veronica Lautreamont," she explained with a concerned frown.

Bell blinked in thought. "Oh, so that's her full name?"

Eina gaped slightly in disbelief. "… Do you… do you even know who she is?"

Bell just shook his head in denial. "No, not really. Just that she's really strong. Her and her friend Mulkula easily took down this huge monster outside the city."

Eina's frown deepened. "… Bell, you need to stay away from that woman."

The boy looked at her, confused. "Eh? Why?"

"Do you know about the kingdoms on this continent?"

Bell shook his head slowly. "No, not really."

"… Seriously?" Eina sighed and motioned to a room at the back. "Okay… come with me."

He nodded, still somewhat confused, but followed her anyway.


Eina and Bell stood inside of a small room with a single window, a table in the center flanked by two small sofas.

The pointy-eared woman proceeded to lay a large map on the table showing a landmass shaped like a dragon with several shapes carved out on it. "Okay, the continent is called Arc Strada, and it's made up of five nations. The Atismata Kingdom, the Lautreamont Knight Kingdom, the Re-Estize Kingdom, the Slane Theocracy, and the Baharuth Empire. The Atismata Kingdom is the most technologically advanced nation in the world, with their Drag-Ride armors."

"Wow… wait, Drag-Ride?"

"Humanoid armors based on dragons. They allow the user to fly, use extremely powerful weapons, almost anything. Now here's the important part, the city of Orario and part of the surrounding landscape is positioned on the border between Atismata and Lautreamont. That way, Orario belongs to no one nation in particular, and so Orario doesn't have a pull towards one or the other. At least, that's how it works in theory."

"In theory?"

"It's becau –" Eina started only for a tall, beautiful woman with long, straight blonde hair and bright green eyes wearing a pinstripe suit that hung tightly to her body, showing impressive figure, to burst into the room. "M – Madame Director!?"

The woman smirked at Eina. "Ah, there you are."

"Beautiful…" Bell muttered under his breath, though the blonde still ended up hearing him.

"Hm? Ah, you must be Bell, the boy Veronica mentioned."

He just blinked in thought.

"I'm Cassandra Lautreamont, Veronica's sister and the head of the Guild."

Bell nodded in understanding. "Oh. Veronica mentioned you."

Cassandra folded her arms with a huff. "I would hope so," she remarked before her lips curled in an eerie smile as her eyes squinted devilishly, "Otherwise, she and I are going to need to have a… talk." Bell just frowned in confusion as Cassandra changed her focus to Eina. "So, I'm guessing you brought your client here for a little… fun, Eina?"

The brunette's face got so red even her ears turned crimson. "N – N – Nothing of the sort!"

"Oh? Then why are you back here and not doing an work?"

"Education!" she shouted, her voice cracking as she pointed to the map of Arc Strada behind her.

Cassandra just chuckled with a wink, she then turned her attention to Bell, the boy standing with a pensive posture. "Val for your thoughts?"

"I just realized something. You and Veronica, you have the same name as –" he began before the door was slammed open by Mulkula.

"Yo, Little Rab –!" she exclaimed before her brown skin went white as she saw Cassandra. "Shit!" She turned to run but Cassandra was instantly in front of her with that same eerie smile.

"Ah, Mulkula, how nice of you to drop by." Again she tried to flee, but Cassandra grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back, her expression an unflinching smile. "Now, now. It's rude to run from a conversation, don't you know?"

"Ouch, ouch, hurts!"

Cassandra pulled on the thick strands, pulling Mulkula's face right next to her own. "So, did you come here to deliver what I asked of you and Veronica before, or did you both forget?"

"Uuhh…" the Amazon mumbled with a trembling smile.

"… You both forgot, didn't you?" Cassandra asked, her smile growing even wider.

Mulkula desperately pointed to Bell. "W – We ran across the kid!"

"That wasn't part of the deal. Tell me, do you know what I hate most?"

"… S – Spriggans…?"

"Those who break their contracts."

Mulkula began sweating heavily.

"I gave you and Veronica one week to obtain them. It's been ten days."

"W – Well… Ya see it's… We kinda lost the Adamantium Ore chunks on the way back…"

Cassandra's smile widened as her eyes cracked open, her beautiful emerald eyes having a dangerous sparkle to them. "Oh? You just… lost it?"

"Ah, Mulkula, you found hi –" Veronica remarked as she walked up to the room before seeing Cassandra and turned on her heels.

In a flash, Cassandra dropped Mulkula, raced over to Veronica slammed a fist into her abdomen so hard she buckled, Bell cringing from the force of the impact. Her fist still buried in her sister's abdomen, Cassandra commented, "How nice of you to drop by, Veronica."

"S – Sister…" Veronica replied weakly.

She proceeded to pick her sister up bridal style and entered the room, slamming and locking the door behind her. "Now, let's talk about that deal you failed to uphold."

Bell swiftly hid behind Eina as the tension in the room built swiftly.

"Did you think I would just forget?" Cassandra asked coldly.

"No," Veronica answered carefully. "Something more important came up."

Cassandra narrowed her eyes doubtfully.

Veronica then motioned to Bell. "Bell, come here a moment."

"I'm fine here!" he responded loudly, his voice cracking somewhat.

She sighed in annoyance. "Then just roll your left sleeve up."

He nodded slowly before revealing the mark on his arm.

Cassandra's eyes widened momentarily before she very quickly regained her usual composure. "… And?"

That got a small reaction of surprise out of Veronica.

"Can you do what I asked you to or not, 'Iron-Blooded Valkyrie'?"

Veronica hissed somewhat at the mention of her title.

"Now, I gave you ten whole days to go to Floor Sixty and get me Adamantine Ore. And yet you have nothing." She motioned to Veronica's dark-skinned partner and added, "And Mulkula here was kind enough to tell me that you lost it."

Veronica twitched an eyebrow at the brunette.

"Now how are you going to make it up to me my dear, sweet sister? Any ideas? Maybe going back down and getting triple the amount agreed on? No, no. You might lose that shipment again on your way back. Hm… Oh why not. Get me thrice the amount of Adamantine Ore or I take ownership of the Slyvanus."

Her sister bit her lip at the proposal, though Bell raised a hand, confused. "Um… what exactly is Adamantine Ore…?"

Cassandra answered simply, "One of the strongest and hardest metals in the world. Usually used in making armor, blunt weapons, and airship hulls."

"Airship…?"

Ignoring his query, she turned to Veronica. "So, since you seem to be rather clumsy, I'll give you a month, understood, Sister?"

"… Y – Yes…" Veronica answered slowly.

"Good. And remember, triple the amount or the Slyvanus and everything on it is mine."

Veronica's face went white as Cassandra's lips curled in a sadistic smirk.

"Even 'that'."

"N – No!" she begged. "I'll get it done. I'll grab a Supporter to make the job quicker."

"Good," Cassandra answered before leaving with a swish of her hair.

As the tension released slowly, Mulkula turned to the cowering silver-haired boy. "You okay?"

"I don't know…" he muttered.

"I'll assume no on that."

Bell just sighed heavily before remembering why he had wanted to see them in the first place. "… Hey…" he called out nervously.

Veronica hummed slightly as she turned to him.

"Do you… think you could take me on Hunts…?"

"Oh? And why is that?"

"I… I want to get a gift for the Goddess, but it'll take me weeks to afford it going into the Dungeon. But… but Hunters make far more than that! So please take me on a Hunt!"

"No," Veronica answered bluntly, causing Bell to stumble back. "You are too weak, and too unskilled to properly perform a Hunt."

"B – But I…"

"However, I can make you strong enough and skilled enough to be a great Hunter."

"Really?" he asked with excitement.

"Yes. But there is one obstacle in the way. That brand on your back is going to do nothing but slow you down."

Bell's excitement instantly washed away.

"I can give you all the training you will need, but it won't do much good with that Curse deciding how you grow."

Bell frowned somberly again. "… It's not a curse…"

Veronica sighed in exasperation. "Whatever. I'll train you as much as I can, but that brand is going to limit how much I can give you. Understood?"

"Yes…"

"Good. Now, let's go."


Shortly after, the trio stood again outside the edge of the city, beyond its massively high walls, in a large field.

"Before we can take you on Hunts, you need to be strong," Veronica explained.

Bell nodded in apprehensive understanding. "R – Right."

"Push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, one hundred of each, fifteen chin-ups, and a ten kilomeder run."

Bell's face went almost as white ash is hair. "HAH!?"

"What?"

"Oh come on," Mulkula remarked, "it's not all that rough."

Bell just gulped before beginning the exercises.


Sometime later, Bell finished his sprint at a dogged pace and collapsed in front of Veronica and Mulkula. "Can't… move…"

Veronica frowned in disappointment. "We haven't even started the skills training."

Bell looked up at her from the ground with exasperated annoyance. "… Why didn't we start with that…?"

"To get you warmed up first."

"Right…"

"Now, I'll give you a few moments to rest, then we're getting started," she remarked before dropping a plain sword onto the ground.

Bell just looked at it puzzled.

"That dagger will be useless against real Monsters, and Mulkula mentioned your fighting style doesn't fit a dagger."

"R – Really?"

Mulkula chuckled lightly with a shrug. "Oh big time. You kept swinging like you had a good few extra celch on your blade."

"Ah…"

"Now, when you're ready," Veronica began, "give it a few swings."


After resting for a bit, Bell stood, albeit somewhat shakily, and picked up the sword and drew it before taking a few practice swings, blinking in realization. "Huh… this feels a lot better."

"Good to hear. Now we need to teach you to use it," she remarked before picking up a wooden sword.

Bell blinked in concern. "Um… shouldn't I have a wooden sword too?"

"It won't matter," she retorted plainly.

"Okay…?"

"Now come at me."

"R – Right…" he stuttered slightly before tightening his grip on the blade and rushing at Veronica, who quite easily used her blade to smack his aside, knocking him off balance before he faceplanted into the dirt.

Veronica sighed heavily. "This is going to be a long day… Again."


Bell groaned as he lay in a heap after sparring with Veronica, who stood over him, frowning. "This won't work if you're not taking it seriously."

"Wh – What…?" he stammered as he stood up.

"You have some good instincts in there, but you're too scared to let them loose. You keep holding back your reflexes and strength to not hit me. Which is insulting. So, we're going to kick things up a little."

"Huh?"

Without a word, Veronica picked up her massive sword.

Bell's blood ran cold before Mulkula remarked, "Uh… think that might be going a bit far, Ver…?"

Veronica did not answer and swung at Bell, who narrowly managed to dodge. "Quit dodging!" she shouted before slamming her sword down hard, hitting the ground right next to him and sending dirt flying in all directions.

Bell's eyes went wide with fear before his mind simply went blank.

Veronica raised an intrigued eyebrow before Bell suddenly rushed forward, straight at her, with his sword ready, though she retaliated with her massive blade, which Bell managed to knock away from him with the side of his sword, causing Veronica to smirk slightly.

Bell once more rushed at her, though Veronica knocked him to the side with her fist, he managed to roll with the strike and continue his charge, swinging his blade at her.

"Good," she complimented as she smacked his sword aside, then caught a punch he threw at her, slightly surprised at the force behind it, causing her smirk to widen. She then flicked him on the forehead lightly, causing him to stumble back somewhat. "I think that will do for now."

Bell blinked in bewilderment before stumbling back with a gasp, and then looked around in confusion. "What… just happened."

Veronica frowned in mild disappointment. "You don't… remember?"

Bell shook his head slowly as he stood. "No… all I remember is your blade almost hitting me… and then I passed out." His shoulders slumped deeply. "I suck…"

Veronica's frown deepened. "How strange…"

"Ya don't say…" Mulkula muttered.

"You certainly do have skills, but it seems you can only call on them when in extreme danger."

"What are you talking about? Your sword almost hit me and I just passed out like a loser."

Veronica sighed before turning to her companion. "… Mlukula, next time we train, make sure to record it."

"Got it," she dark-skinned beauty nodded.

Bell just blinked in confusion before Veronica continued, "You did rather well for a first attempt at Hunter training. Once you can do all of those training exercises within an hour and manage to hit me at least twice, I'll take you on a Hunt."

"… R – Right…" he remarked, anxiously before Veronica handed him a small bag. He blinked in confusion and opened it, seeing six gold Val coins inside. "Wh – What…? Why?"

"I know we took you away from the Dungeon today, so consider this compensation."

"Ah… thanks…"

"I assume you'll be here tomorrow?"

"I – If you'll keep training me."

"Good to hear. I'll see you then."

"R – Right."


"What a day…" Bell groaned as he made his way back to the rundown church, Hestia waiting for him with a grin.

"Welcome home, Bell," she greeted as they both walked in.

Bel just nodded with a tired smile. "Good to see you, Goddess…"

"Bell? What's wrong? You look exhausted."

"Long day… Miss Veronica tired me out completely…"

Hestia gaped in disbelief before Bell handed her the bag of gold. She just stared at it in disbelief. "… Tell me the truth. What are you doing with her?"

"Training."

"… Training for what…?"

"To fight and Hunt."

"If you say so… I thought you wanted to be an Adventurer though?"

Bell sighed with exhaustion. "I do… but there's something I need to do, and I need more Vals quicker than being an Adventurer would allow me to do."

"I see…" 'Wait… I bet it's a present for some homewrecker!' She was pulled from her thoughts when Bell let out a long, huge yawn.

"I think I'm going to get a little rest… good night…" he mumbled before collapsing onto the couch.

Hestia just stood over him pouting. She clenched her fists in frustration. "Damn it…" she cursed before staring into the sky defiantly. "I swear whoever you are, Veronica, I won't let you get Bell!"


The next morning, Bell sighed as he woke up with a groan. "A new day…" Stretching his muscles, he noticed Hestia asleep on the floor next to the sofa. Frowning, he picked her up and moved her gently to the bed.

She turned her sleep, mumbling, "Mm… Bell…"

Bell just laughed weakly before leaving quietly.


In the same field outside the city, Veronica stood with her arms folded before watching as Bell ran up to her. "Ah, you arrived. Good."

"Y – Yeah…" he stammered weakly.

"Got the recorder," Mulkula remarked, holding up a small box.

Bell stared at it curiously. "What's that?"

"A device that records images," Veronica explained, though that only seemed to confuse him further. Sighing, she added, "… It keeps a record of history, like a Memory Stone of sorts."

He made a silent "Oh" as he nodded.

"Forget it. Exercises."

"R – Right…" he stammered.


Several hours later, Bell lay in a heap on the ground. Veronica sighed as she folded her arms under her globes. "Well, at least you were a little faster than last time. Which is good."

Mulkula looked from behind her recorder and added, "Hey, Ver, maybe we should do his training with swords first from now on?"

"Maybe…" Veronica remarked in thought, Bell just lying on the ground, groaning. "Now then," she remarked, pulling out one of the wooden swords. "Try to take it seriously this time."

Bell gulped before drawing the sword, gripping it somewhat nervously.

"Whenever you're ready."

Bell nodded before charging at her, swinging, though she easily blocked his strike without moving from her spot. "Oh boy…"

"My turn," she announced calmly before swinging her sword with force, sending Bell flying back.

Mulkula winced from watching that.

Bell stood up shakily and charged yet again, Veronica again blocking his strike.

Veronica frowned in return. "You have two hands, use them both. Like this," she added before taking her unarmed left hand and swinging it at Bell, hitting him square in the chest. Had he not had his armor plate on, she may have broken several bones.

Mulkula frowned slightly as she watched. "Aren't ya bein' a little rough?"

"He can handle it," Veronica argued before Bell stood and charged once more. "You keep using the same tactic. Even the dumbest Monster will figure out a workaround if you do that," she chided before side-stepping his charge and smacking him on the back of the head. "See? Change things up."

"R – Right," he groaned before standing and charging at her, throwing a kick at her instead of his sword, which she still managed to catch.

"Better," Veronica commented as he swung his sword before using Bell's upraised leg to flip him up over his head.

He let out a loud grunt as he hit the ground, getting the wind knocked out of him.

"And don't just attack randomly, go for the weak points. Every living thing has a weak spot. Like the neck, heels, and wrists."

"R – Right…" he muttered as he stood, gasping slightly.

"Now attack," she urged as he lunged at her, only for her to smash her leg into his abdomen.

Bell groaned in pain as he stood up.

Mulkula blinked in thought. "Huh, he's getting' up faster. That's at least something."

Again Bell swung with a lung, yet again getting sent flying with Veronica's sword, only for the blonde to sigh in frustration. "Time to end this I suppose," she remarked as he dashed to the side and lunged, only to kick Bell's feet out from under him, flipping him onto his back in the air, and then slammed a fist down on his chest, smashing him into the ground, knocking him unconscious.

Mulkula cringed from the sound he made on impact. "Ouch…"

However, after a moment, Bell forced himself to his feet, Veronica seeing the same dull look in his eyes as previously before he kicked off from his spot and charged, Veronica raising her blade to block his strike, only for Bell to grab her sword arm, twist himself up around it as a focus point, and slam his shin against the side of her head.

"Whoa!" Mulkula gasped in shock as Veronica stumbled to the side.

Veronica hopped back slightly to regain her footing, a small smile on her lips. 'Good. That's the Lux I used to spar with.' She immediately tossed the wooden sword away and grabbed her massive blade from nearby and readied herself for a fight.

Bell dug his heel into the dirt as he rushed at Veronica, who swung her sword at the silver-haired boy, only for him to duck under the massive blade before slamming his foot on the side as it reached the end of its arc, burying it in the dirt, and thrust his sword out.

Keeping a grip of her blade, Veronica twisted out of the way of his strike, right as Bell leapt off her sword, landed nearby, and spun his leg out to hit her leg, which she managed to dodge by lifting her leg, only for Bell to use his momentum to spin with the strike, slashing at the blonde's heel.

"Shit!" Mulkula cursed as she immediately looked to a large rock nearby.

Veronica cursed silently as she stumbled back. 'I let my guard down.'

Bell readied his sword to strike Veronica once more, only for a large object to strike him from the side, knocking him completely unconscious. Veronica blinked in surprise and turned to see Mulkula standing with a hand outstretched as she sighed.

"Way too close…" the brunette muttered as Veronica merely stared at the unconscious Bell. "You okay, Ver?"

"Yes," she answered plainly.

"Right…" Mulkula answered incredulously as she looked at the blonde's slowly bleeding ankle.

"It will heal," she remarked before making her way over to Bell with a slight limp before picking him up. "Now we should get him home."

"In your condition?" Mulkula chided.

"I will manage just fine."

Mulkula let out a frustrated sigh before furrowing her brow in thought. "… Hey um… where does he even live?"

Veronica stopped immediately as she took a step. "… That is a very good question. Let us head to the Guild."

"Right…" Mulkula just sighed.


Soon, Veronica and Mulkula walked into the Guild, Veronica carrying the unconscious Bell over her shoulder.

Noticing two figures approaching, Eina looked up with a professional smile. "Ah, welcome to the Gui – Bell!?" she suddenly shouted as she saw the boy. "Wh – What happened?!" she shouted as she ran from behind the counter to Veronica and the others.

"He exhausted himself during training," Veronica explained plainly.

Eina frowned in confusion before noticing Veronica's lightly bandaged foot. "Y – You're bleeding!"

"I am fine. Tell me, where does Bell live?"

Eina's confused frown deepened before she finally sighed in defeat. "What the hell is going on here…?" With another sigh, she answered, "A rundown church between Northwest and West Main."

"Right. Thank you for the information," Veronica replied before dropping a bag of coins in her hand. "Payment for the help."

"R – Right…"


Hestia hummed in thought as she sat in the small room of her and Bell's makeshift home. "What to make for dinner…?" She was brought from her thoughts when she heard a knock at the door atop the small set of stairs. 'Why would Bell knock?' she wondered as she opened it, and then saw Mulkula and Veronica standing outside the door. 'HUGE!'

Veronica blinked and looked around in thought. "Huh. The door just opened."

Hestia clenched her fists as her twintails began flailing. "Nununu… down here!"

Veronica blinked in thought and then looked down, seeing Hestia. "Ah."

Hestia frowned angrily. "Who are you and what do you – Bell!" she began to ask before paling as she saw the unconscious Bell on Veronica's shoulder.

"He is fine, just sleeping."

"What'd you do to him!?"

"Nothing. He passed out while training."

"Oh… wait, you're Veronica!?"

"I am. Why?"

Hestia just stared at the blonde, her eyes locked on the massive globes hanging off her front, before slumping her shoulders in defeat, Mulkula snickering in amusement.

"Is something the matter?"

Mulkula interjected, "Why don't we just drop off the Little Rabbit before the pipsqueak blows a gasket?"

"I suppose."

Hestia just glared at the two women.

Veronica walked into the small room with a slight limp and put Bell on the bed.

Hestia blinked in confusion, then noticed the blood staining the bandages on Veronica's foot. "Wh – What the…?"

"Is something the matter?"

"You're bleeding…"

"Training accident," she answered plainly.

Hestia frowned uncertainly before Mulkula added, "Things got pretty heavy, you don't need to be worried though. Little Rabbit will be just fine."

Veronica then noticed a blanket and pillow folded up on the nearby sofa. "You lie on the cough, I take it?"

Hestia shook her head in denial. "No, Bell does."

"… What?"


And cut! That ends the first chapter! Be sure to leave a review letting me know if you enjoyed it. If you were confused, unsure, or have questions on anything, leave a review about that and I will address your concerns in the next chapter's reviewer responses. As for if you did not enjoy it, post a review with your grievances if you must, but do try to be cogent and civil about it. I do not really have anything else to add here, so until next time!