A/N: Sup guys, wiErD here. Back again with another chapter.

Have fun and Happy Reading ^^

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for my plots. Everything else is owned by their respective authors. Support the official releases.


- Prelude to Despair -


It was the third week of the month ever since his recovery from the Monsterphilia incident. Natsu hoisted his backpack with his scarf wrapped around his neck as he readied himself to depart from his home. He had already updated his status with Hestia and saw improvement of his overall abilities. The changes of his magic and experience also improved, with him able to utilize his magic into different varieties which was a very unique form to any normal mage. Perhaps the magic that appeared in him enabled him to use it in any form he could think of. Hestia even commented that something like that was close as being an unfair advantage and wondered where he even got the said magic.

Not that he ever knew either way.

In addition, his constant use of it provided him to last longer in battle. Unlike from before, he could now hold onto his own using spells more frequently. He had been secretly training in improving it just outside the church to work on it. And in just a month, he had already experienced significant changes overall, making it seem like he leveled up just by doing those things alone.

Still, the sign of any leveling up doesn't seem to appear until now. It had been four months ever since he started being an adventurer by receiving falna from his Goddess and the boy had already shown enough great improvements on his status which are nearing at A or S status as a result.

"So you're going to the dungeon again?"

"Yep. Wendy and I will be trying to scout the 12th floor to test our party strength there. We won't take long there though." Natsu explained as he stood beside Hestia who had finished checking his status just a while ago.

"I see… Although I'm a bit adamant of saying this all the time but do be careful on your way, alright? Don't take any reckless actions just because you have good abilities. One flaw will result you in dangerous situations." She warned.

"Of course! I'll be extra careful! I promise not to careless. I mean, I still have Wendy to look out for." He reassured. A toothy grin was plastered on his face as he said that.

"Sure…" Hestia answered monotonously. A mention of his party member quickly dissolved her worries and turned into a mild form of suspicion. While the female had seemingly no intention in deepening her relationship with the pinkette, the goddess couldn't be less careful at anything especially when it comes to the opposite sex.

Nevertheless, she bid him a good farewell to his journey as she watched him disappear into the distance with his pack around his back. Hestia stood at the entrance of the church for a moment, staring at the distance where he had run off to. A certain thought quickly returned to her mind as soon as she set aside her thoughts of her child for a moment.

That's right. Today is the day where Robaul and Miach will be visiting.

A piece of reminder caught her mind as she pondered about the meeting with the other two gods. Both she and the two are managing a small familia, unlike the other bigger ones. They have only a few adventurers as their familias were formed rather recently, starting just a few months back compared to the other deities who formed theirs for years with the exception of Miach due to some circumstances involved.

Since her child is partnering with Robaul's, she wouldn't want to waste the opportunity to bond with the fellow god along with Miach since both of them are good friends with her even way back when they were still at Heaven. Their similarities in having a small familia were enough to relate to each other. They were humble to go on their way as to work despite being deities to help their children in every way they can.

This could be the perfect chance to meet him and establish a good relationship between the two of them and their familias.

She turned her attention toward the other direction and also started to work for her job.

It's going to be another day for her at the stall to sell some delicious Jagamarukun. It just so happened to be her favorite food as well. What more she could expect to enjoy in the Lower World aside from Natsu and food?

Nevertheless, Hestia was having a blast of her life as a hardworking goddess.


Twilight Manor, Loki Familia Home


The Loki Familia currently has its activities on hold. With their recent expedition going up in flames due to the appearance of some new species on the 50th Floor, the group was forced to give up their progress and retreat back to the surface. The confirmed existence of the caterpillar monsters that spit out acid is something new to the board of monster list recorded in the Guild. Reports of their expedition were given out and the group was put on hold as soon as they finished returning their quests and collected their rewards.

Ais sat on the living room of the Familia home in deep thought. The recent events occurring ever since returning to Orario weighed heavily on her mind.

The adventurer with pink hair wearing a scaly scarf. His fight against the minotaur. Their brief encounter a few nights back. Those were the memories that kept bugging her ever since. Normally, she would've shrugged it off and went straight to the dungeon to kill time but for some reason, she finds herself secluded home without anything else to do except thinking about the perky adventurer.

There was nothing important to see about him. At least for most of the members of her familia. Ais knew that moment when their eyes first met on that incident, she felt some sort of connection but that's not the only thing that she caught on the boy.

What caught her attention was his spirit. A burning flame that keeps burning and pushing one to grow stronger despite the dangers. Ais felt like that she had seen herself with that boy. Ever since she started as an adventurer, she wanted nothing but to become stronger. The desire of hers was just as bright as that adventurer did when he faced that minotaur alone. Like a raging fire that keeps getting her into danger without any sense of care for her own safety. It was pretty much the same thing every time she goes out in battle which is also why she keeps getting scolded by Finn and the others for being too reckless.

Nothing but for the sake of getting stronger than anyone else.

It was sort of a twisted goal. She had experienced how it changed her completely through the years being an adventurer. And while it paid off with her being able to become one of the top adventurers in Orario, it was never enough for her. The flame inside her continued to burn along with her desire, eating away at anything just to fulfill that one goal.

And just like her, the boy had an extreme burning desire to grow stronger.

However, there was a difference.

For Ais, she had been at nothing but killing monsters for the sake of strength. What she saw in that boy's spirit was not out of power but of protection. What made them different from each other was their driving passion in pursuing strength. That boy's flame had a burning passion similar to hers but its color was not twisted.

If she were to compare both, hers was a black flame that searches for strength nonstop. It would keep spreading and look for more to keep itself lit until there was no more. The boy, on the other hand, was a crimson flame, shining brighter than any other without the need to look for anything to sustain itself. Instead, it will burn in its place, shining brightly whenever needed. It does not need to shine brightly all the time.

She thought it like that and because of that, she finds curiosity to the boy. That short encounter with him that night is what caused her to reach out a hand to him. She wanted to meet him and talk to him. Although, it was weird for someone who's a stranger to you wanting to be acquainted for some reason. She is in no way oblivious to social interactions after all despite her doll-like appearance.

In the end, it resulted with them being interrupted halfway, partly returning to their own previous ventures without saying much of a word.

Her troubles continued, failing to notice the other people inside the room as well.

Leaving to her own matters, other members of the group stood at the far corner of the room, observing the rather silent Kenki in question. This is the first time they've seen the girl so dull in a sense. They expected her to head out to the dungeon after the expedition but it seems like something happened that resulted her in this current state.

"Ais is being weird…" Tiona pouted. Her face sprawled at a table far from the living room, observing the girl from the distance with a slightly worried look as she sat on a sofa with her knees folded that was supported by her arms in front.

Along with her, Tione and Lefiya were also amongst the group who also had mixed expressions about the current atmosphere. Even they could not afford to know what was bothering Ais at the moment.

"Riiiiggghhhtttt? She had been looking like that since a few days ago. I wonder what's bothering her?" Tione said so with a complicated expression.

"Ais-san…" Lefiya could only mutter in extreme worry.

"Do you have any idea why she's been acting like that?" Tione turned to her twin with a questioning look.

"Who knows? There isn't anything worth noting of what's happened since our return. Maybe some kind of problem that we're not aware of?"

"I guess. Maybe we should start asking her right now. It can't stay like this forever now, right?" She said as she thought an idea. A smile plastering her face as she stared at the other two in confidence.

"B-But is it alright? W-W-We really shouldn't bother her until w-we find out what's really troubling her." Lefiya stuttered with a hint of protest but the amazon's idea seemed to spark her other twin as well as she cut off the shy elf with a bombastic smile.

"Good plan!"

The duo decided and it was at that moment they also included Lefiya as well to the fray and approached the blonde adventurer.

"Hey, Ais!"

"Tiona."

"Let's go to the dungeon! Us together with Tione and Lefiya."

Ais paused for a moment as she looked at her fellow members with a slightly uncertain look. She wanted to tag along since time's being wasted for holing up in here without doing anything. Her black flame still igniting to push her to kill more monsters to increase her abilities. Again, she would've come along without a second heartbeat but her pondering thoughts continue to occupy her of the boy that made her shook her head in response to her offer.

"I'm sorry but I don't think I'm in a mood to go to the dungeon."

Her response took them by surprise since they never heard of her refusing to tag along for any dungeon exploring… like ever.

But then again, Tiona immediately regain herself and simply offered her something nonetheless.

"Well then, how about we go shopping?"

This time, it was Ais' turn to lift her head. "Shopping?"

"Yep! There's something in your mind, right? Then let's go do something other than dungeon exploring. You never did any shopping before, right?"

Ais nodded.

"Then isn't it the perfect time to go? Let's do something fun! Tione and Lefiya will be coming too. We can buy some clothes for you if you ever need one. You're not suited for that kind of look, you know."

"My look?" She said as if confused.

"Mhm…" Tiona nodded. "Ais is always bright and cheerful! She is always clumsy and sometimes a bit of an airhead at most times." She described, earning a cutely-made pout from the Sword Princess herself. "...So seeing you like that is kinda worrying. Even Lefiya is worried too."

Ais looked at her friends in wonder. She was acting like this that even made them worry for her. Indeed that she was conflicted at something but she didn't want them worrying for her. It wasn't that she was troubling herself to think about that time with that boy but she certainly didn't want to have them worried about her all the time.

Seeing them like that, she could only offer a meek response.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't mind it. It's good that you're acting like yourself again so we're just gonna offer a condition." Tiona grinned.

"Condition?"

"Shop with us. For leaving us out here in the dark."

"E-EEEEEEEEHHHHH T-TIONA-SAN?!" Lefiya gaped in shock.

Ais tilted her head in fashion at her adventurer's response. "Okay, but is that it?"

She was expecting a more heavy condition from them but it seems it wasn't the case. Nevertheless, her conversation with her friends lessened her focus about the pink-haired adventurer.

Smiling warmly towards them, she prepped off her sofa and readied herself to head out to town for a change of pace.

"Alright, let's go."

The girls all smiled happily in response, including Lefiya who was glad that she was back to her usual self again. They went out of the room and later outside as they make their way to the Main street.

Just from a window from another room of the Twilight Manor, Finn was staring at the fleeting group with a smile of his own before turning his gaze away from it and into the table in front of him.

"Have they gone out?"

"Yes."

"Then I guess my worries were unfounded," Riveria concluded with a satisfied look on her face.

"Don't say that. In fact, the problem doesn't seem to be that serious compared when she was still a child back then but still…" Gareth paused. "...To think that Ais would have something else to think other than the dungeon. This sure has quite an impact on her, don't you think? A man perhaps?"

Riveria chuckled lightly to herself. "Fufu, I would be glad if that's the case but it isn't as simple as that. What do you think, Finn?"

Their eyes turned back to the Pallum with amused faces.

"Well, I won't be able to answer to that but anyways, we should head to our own matters now."

"Guess we'll leave it at that, eh?" Gareth commented with a light chuckle.

The three smiled before eventually returning their report of today's operations, leaving the girls to their own matters.


Back to the dungeon


Sounds of cracking walls came from the left section of the tunnel as Natsu and Wendy waded their journey to the 9th floor with hasty succession. A trail of magic stones was seen from their wake but the duo had no need of them since the abundance of bigger ones existed on the 12th floor. Why stuff smaller stones when you can frequent bigger ones on the lower floors? It's obvious that they would choose a much more abundant hunting ground to earn valis.

"Are you tired, Wendy?" Natsu turned to his supporter in slight concern. They've been running for quite a while starting from the 1st floor since they need to reach down to the 12th floor as early as possible.

"I'm fine, Natsu-san. Let's go a bit further." The petite adventurer insisted with a strong face much to the pinkette's surprise but kept it to himself as he turned his eyes back to the front, avoiding the monsters and conserving their strengths as much as possible.

It had been just a couple of weeks since they partied but the two had already known each other and grew the trust they have to each other. Her showing signs of confidence meant that she was starting to mature and had only shown moments of timidness less.

It only took him just now to realize just how much time they spent with each other in the dungeon and they had already grown significantly enough that made them different from their past selves.

"Yosh, we'll take a short break on the 10th floor. After that, we'll prepare for the 12th. Is that okay?"

"Yes, Natsu-san!" Wendy steeled her response, earning a chuckle from him.

"Haha, you're getting the hang of it."

"Well, I guess I got used to it." Wendy monotonously answered. A dull look on her eyes suggests that the occurrence was an everyday chore of her adventures with the boy.

"Well, don't look so down now. We're just getting started, you know." Natsu said, spotting a group of monsters blocking their path to the lower floors.

"I'm right behind you, Natsu-san!" Wendy hoisted her crossbow at hand.

"I'm all fired up!"


Meanwhile, in the Guild Main Building


The current affairs of the Guild continued on as usual with papers rolling in to be filled by the member staff, providing their service to the adventurers in terms of the information regarding the dangers of the dungeon.

Eina heaved a weary sigh as she passed another set of papers, finishing them and earned her a short break from the constant writing and handling of adventurers that were administered under her provision. She was having quite a stressful moment and the break gave her some time to regain herself from her feet.

However, that was just half why her stress continued to pile up. More reports of dangers from the floors and the affected party of adventurers got her quite in the edge. She's never really fond of dealing with danger-related issues that involved adventurers and monsters. In fact, one of the job criteria for becoming a Guild member staff is to have a strong heart so in the face of tragedy, they wouldn't have to break down that would affect their performance in keeping the organization running in the process. However, there were some cases before that members tend to break down and eventually quit when an incident was brought up to the Guild with someone dying inside the dungeon due to monsters.

Sure, they knew the risk in going down the dungeon floors but danger was always the constant reminder in the heads of many adventurers that brave the dungeon floors while seeking glory and fame. Glory meant nothing to a dead person so the norm was changed and encouraged newer adventurers to come back in one piece no matter what.

Unfortunately, not all miracles are granted to unfortunate adventurers which inevitably caused them their deaths.

That's why Guild member staffs tend to not get too close to their client adventurers due to the attachment they have if it were so. They couldn't handle the pain of losing the people they were once close with.

Eina herself was not exempted from this.

She had experienced it firsthand and she learned it the hard way. She was never the type who had a steel heart so she was devastated when a particular incident came to her that led her close to breaking. Eventually, she continued her job despite it and even tried to prepare herself when one of her adventurers perished under her care.

Thinking about adventurers, her eyes opened slowly and stared at the ceiling after remembering something.

"Natsu, huh?"

That brash adventurer who came busting in front of the Guild doors and declared to everyone inside that he will be the strongest was the strong memory she had in him when they met the first time.

She remembered that time when even her guild members would often chat amongst themselves that he would die soon in the dungeon if he kept that kind of mentality. In truth, she was also concerned and thinking the same way but thinking back then, it seems like it wasn't as it seemed to have turned out for him.

Forcing herself to take responsibility for the boy, she had taken it upon herself to help the newbie adventurer to at least prevent himself from jumping to his demise too early.

At least, that's what she thought.

Over the times he had to come and report back to her from the dungeon, she would find him in bruises and wounds that would literally put someone unconscious if they kept moving around like that. Of course, there are times where she had seen him go unconscious due to his injuries but she knew that he had the lack of fear in his eyes and was always ready to challenge the unknown without the need of his safety.

That's what worried her about him even until now although he had come to acknowledge some of her warnings and became careful on his journeys especially after teaming up with a supporter from another familia.

Wendy, was it?

Eina hadn't heard of the girl but she seemed to be part of another guild member that supervises her progress. She heard that she was part of the Robaul Familia. A rather small familia that started just a year ago with only a few adventurers.

She didn't know what to think about the matter other than being glad that there's someone that looks after him since he was initially working solo until now.

She encountered the duo just recently and asked to be permitted to go to the 12th floor much to her dismay though coming from them, she reluctantly agreed to let them and left without saying a word. She couldn't possibly deny that the two are capable enough to head to the said floor without much of a problem.

Truly, it was such a pain to look after a troublesome adventurer.

With her hand placed above her head, she felt a cold touch from her fingers, urging her to look back and saw Misha with a glass of water placed right beside her table.

"Good work, Eina-chan." She said.

"Thanks." Eina offered no hesitation and accepted the glass wholeheartedly that somehow reduced her stress for the meantime.

"It's getting quite a bit busy in here. A lot of new adventurers and requests were put out and we still have no increased pay." She commented.

"If money is all you could think about in taking this job, I think you're better off finding more comfortable ones than this," Eina advised.

"It's a joke! I'm just joking here, see? Anyways, it seems like you had a lot in your mind so I came by just in case." She said.

"You're right. Though I'm happy with all the things going, I just can't feel right about it. You know what I'm talking about."

"Woman's intuition. As sharp as ever, Eina. Well, I don't exactly feel that way since it doesn't happen to me all the time."

"Lucky you~" Eina muttered as she slumped her shoulders down the table tiredly.

"Well, if you want me to answer, I think it's because of what happened to that pink-haired boy adventurer that you're currently handling with."

At the mention of the pinkette, Eina couldn't help but shoot a suspicious stare at her colleague. In every moment she tries to tease her, she would always bring up Natsu in any way possible which ironically made her fall for it countless times and embarrassed herself in the process.

To be frank, she couldn't deny that she was somehow closely attached to him during the times they talked a lot despite just being an advisor to him. He was the only adventurer that would go out his way to talk to her even at times when she's not working as a Guild member.

That cemented the fact that she constantly checks up on him whenever he returns to the dungeon every day without even realizing she was trying to help him on her own accord.

"Why is that?"

"Well, he was the one who got involved in that Monsterphilia incident, right? If I remember it right, he was badly wounded enough that even we had to request help from nearby familias to help out with the recovery. I think it's because of that you began thinking that way, don't you think?" Misha smiled.

"That's a bit far off to be the answer, Misha. Natsu and I have nothing in common. We're just advisor and adventurer. Nothing more." She said as straight as she could.

"That's what you think."

"It's our job not to involve too much on the adventurers. You know this much as well as I do, you know." She reminded.

"And yet here you are, worrying over that boy ever so often without even realizing it."

"I-I'm just helping him out to become accustomed to the life of an adventurer. Natsu can be a bit of a dunce sometimes that he doesn't realize the danger he was having around him." She protested in defense.

"Heeeeeeeeeh~" Misha teased. "Well, you're free to think it like that but." She paused before putting a sincere look at her friend as she speaks.

"You don't have to lock your feelings just for that simple reason. There's no reason for us to push away the people that wanted to associate with us. We're people too, you know. We shouldn't forget that fact even when we're wearing these clothes." She said as she looked at the line of adventurers from the counter.

"Having someone other than yourself is a great feeling. You should learn to cherish it, Eina-chan."

Eina was wordlessly surprised at the talk but eventually smiled afterward upon understanding the advice she was giving to her. Out of all the other guild members, she was the most lighthearted of them all.

"I see… Thank you, Misha."

"Good! It seems like you're good as new. Let's go back. We might've wasted too much time on our break here."

"You're right."

The two got up from the seats and eventually returned to their duties as they spotted a group adventurers coming towards them.

It's going to be another busy day.



Ais felt like she regretted coming with Tione in this shopping trip as she found themselves into one of the shops that featured clothes that were… a bit new to her. The sight of skimpy outfits and all-too-revealing apparel were a sight that put a huge blush on her cheeks along with Lefiya who also happens to be innocent just like her.

She knew the amazon twin was head-over-heels for the captain but she never thought that she would resort to buying things like this just for that one thing. Of course, every single move she had with the captain ended with a swift and sincere rejection though it didn't seem to faze her one bit and would try again and again to gain his affection.

The Kenki stood side by side with the other two amazoness who had a different expression apart from her.

"So, so, what do you think of this place? Does this strike your fancy?" Tione nudged the rigid adventurer with a wink from her eye.

"U-Uhm… Not really but—" She wasn't given the chance to reply was pulled by Tiona towards another shop that forced her off from her position and got dragged across the other side.

"You should also try this! This shop is also good with those too! Wanna try?"

Ais looked at the sign of the shop's name with wonder and embarrassment. Terra Firme, one of the popular shops that she heard from the two amazoness that sell exotic clothes, however, she never thought of the meaning exotic would be these types of things.

The group entered inside, greeted by a huge number of section of different clothes that each featured different designs one would choose from a single type of cloth.

Tiona and Tione led Ais to a few of them that also happens to be their favorite sections of clothes and introduced their choice to her in the process.

Tiona chose her own clothes' style which was the spitting image of her current outfit.

"How's this, Ais? I'm sure it'll be fun if we were to be dressed the same, right"

"..." Ais wordlessly stared at the clothes in careful fashion, specifically to the sash that bands over the chest region.

A thought came to her mind about the problems that would come if she were to wear that kind of clothing which also included the lower section of her body that happens to be exposed as it is just like the upper clothing. At the same time, her thoughts were answered with a form of tease that came from Tione who approached them with mocking expression, specifically to her twin.

"That's no good, Tiona. Ais would feel tight if she would wear that flat of a cloth that gets in the way of her breast, you know." She said with a teasing tone along with her gaze that repeatedly stares right into her twin's chest as if implying something that she had forgotten to consider when choosing the clothes for the Sword Princess.

"YOU JUST HAD TO SAY IT, DID YOU?!"

"Ara, ara~ I didn't say anything about yours. I was just being considerate to Ais' wellbeing, you know."

"LIKE HELL YOU WERE! I COULD SEE YOUR EYES LOOKING AT MY CHEST JUST NOW!"

"Ufufu… I don't see any worth looking at it anyway."

"I'm gonna beat you up so hard." Tiona dissed.

"Huh. You saying something, washboard?"

"Of course, I do. Cow-sized pig!"

Ais stared at the seething duo with a cold sweat. Apparently, they briefly forgot what they came for and immediately got themselves into a heated argument with each other. She didn't know how to handle the situation as the growing aura between the two began to overshadow the atmosphere around the shop that scared some of the customers that were inside along with them. Should the two of them find themselves in a catfight, the store might just have to see its last moment standing in place as the fight would escalate to a beatdown between these battle-hardened girls.

All for some ridiculous thing.

"Muo… You two are always like that! You're making trouble to Ais-san!" It was then they heard a shout from Lefiya who stood from behind and stopped the two, much to the store owners and the customer's relief as soon as the atmosphere died down.

The elf girl stepped up with a reprimanding look as the walked towards the two before speaking. "And also, bringing her here to try some indecent clothing is too much!"

"Well, I just wanted to see if Ais would want to try out something like this for a change." Tiona scratched her head sheepishly. Her tongue stuck out as to tease the fuming elf mage in the process.

"A-Anyways, she can't try out this kind of thing! A-A-Ais is too innocent for it. I-I-It won't do me good if she were to wear this sort of clothing!"

"Which means you were also hoping for her to try it too."

"N-No! I-I mean yes. N-No, that's not it! That's not the point here!"

"Really, Lefiya really admires Ais. Don't you think too?"

"It's obvious by a long shot."

"I DID NOT!" Lefiya adamantly denied their claims but it seems like it didn't convince them one bit, leading to her embarrassment.

"A-Anyways, this is not the kind of place we should be going. Ais should be elegant, proper, and graceful. And I know just the place that would suit her best to her outfits."

Pulling Ais away from the store, the elf began dragging the still confused blonde adventurer while leaving the other two who could only smile at each other and followed suit.

They arrived just a few moments later as the group was led to another store which was in stark contrast to the one that Tione and Tiona had visited earlier. It was an elf store which meant that most of the styles in their outfits derived from elven culture from frilled-dress for women to grace-woven suits for men.

"Woah!" The three girls awed at the sight of the store with shocked faces.

"This is a store for elves. Elfen Clothing Shop. They have a unique and elegant design. From high-quality smooth silk to soft linen that does not lose its gleam. All high-quality materials are used here to make first-class products!"

Lefiya then proceeded to try them out her recommended clothes to the three. Ais partook the tryout for the first time since this kind of outfit was somehow tolerable than the last one. She tried several outfits that were introduced to her by the wood elf.

Tiona and Tione tried some of the clothes as well which then gave the elf their opinions of the outfits.

"Hmmmm… Feels quite hot while wearing it though." Tiona commented.

"These clothes are a bit tight for my chest. Makes movement difficult too. Are there any bigger sizes for this?" Tione answered, wearing a buttoned shirt which was close to breaking.

"Stop asking the impossible!" Lefiya sweatdropped.

After a few seconds, the elf sighed before turning her attention back to the sword princess. "How about you, Ais-sa—n"

Her words cut short, noticing a lack of the girl around them. She was with them just a while ago.

"A-Ais-san?!"

Outside the store just a few steps away from it, Ais walked a steady pace as she tried to familiarize herself to the unfamiliar street. Since she never visited this place, she found herself in a pinch. The only thing she familiarized was the main route of her familia's house and the dungeon. She never had any trips elsewhere except just a few times on some places where Loki would take her to.

Even so, she would forget them all and would just come back home or go towards the dungeon to continue her killing spree against the monsters to get stronger although right now, she hasn't got the motivation to do so at the moment.

Normally, when the expedition ends, she would just head off with nothing to think about. Every second is precious to her for the sake of getting stronger. She could only wonder to herself why she's still here on the surface.

She could be somewhere around the deeper floors of the dungeon, making her round trip of kills to gain experience.

At that moment, the image of the boy occupied her mind once again. Every time, she would think about going out to the dungeon, she would remember the adventurer.

Why is it?

She knew the difference between her and that boy but why is her mind so adamantly focused on the boy. They never met once in their life and she was sure that she doesn't know him from anywhere from her childhood too yet she grew curious of him every time she thought him.

She tried to shake off her thoughts when she noticed Tione in front of her who seemed to appear out of nowhere since she expected her to be at the store along with Tiona and Lefiya.

"Running off to somewhere, Ais? Still had that cloud on your mind?" She said so knowingly of the girl's current predicament.

"Tione…"

"Ais, you did not think of what kind of clothes you wished to try, right? Even after all that, you can't seem to enjoy much like the two earlier." She commented with a casual tone.

"I don't know… I always wanted nothing but getting stronger. I don't think I'm not clear of myself right now." She said with a sullen look.

"Is that so? Well, let me show something. Care to come with me for a while? It's not that far off."

Ais silently nodded as she followed the amazon wordlessly. It took only a few minutes of walking when they arrived at a small plaza where they could see some of the people converging from other streets. At the center of the street was a fountain with a statue standing above it. Ais recognized the statue to be something of a god depicted from Finn's room. Although she visited rarely, she recalled the same statue imbued to the painting placed on one of the walls of his room.

"This is Goddess Fiona. You heard of it from Finn's race and history, right?"

"Yes."

"And you know the history behind it too, right?"

"A bit."

Tione nodded before continuing. "Back then, before the gods descended, a few knights constructed this depiction and revered it as a goddess. It also became the Pallums (hobbits) god for worship. Their religion to be exact which also embodied their faiths and beliefs. When the true gods came, this faith vanished without a trace…"

"The Pallum lost their pillar of worship that supported them throughout the years. As a result, they were on the path to decline. It is basically rare for you to heroic tales of the Pallum. Even they do become adventurers on their own, most of them are supporters or rear-guards. The entire race had given up. Their strength, their confidence, their faith, their courage. You could say that they were doomed ever since, however…" She paused, looking at the statue that was erected from another platform atop of the other statue.

"The Captain came to Orario in order to revive his own race. For all the Pallum that are living in this world, men, women and children alike, he stepped in front to let them feel the existence of pride. He became the beacon of hope for them that even with the decline of their false deity, he stood believing that their race could continue on and persevere in the face of despair. That strength and the burden he had to carry was something admirable for someone like him who just wanted to help his own race." She closed her eyes in content.

Ais stared at her for a moment as soon as her eyes opened once again and spoke to her. "Ais, my encounter with the Captain have given me another goal aside from becoming stronger after I joined the Loki Familia. I'm sure Tiona and Lefiya might not realize it yet but you…"

"Your feelings aside from getting stronger. You found that different feeling too, right?"

At that statement, Ais stood there unmoving, struck at the words from the amazon.

Thinking at that time with her encounter with him that night, what did she feel during that time? What did she feel that made her set aside her feelings of acquiring strength?

She clutched her own chest, finding the right answer. Her lips quivered at the uncertainty that might go awry if she failed to understand that feeling. However, her mind stopped when she felt a soft touch to her face as she saw Tione placing a hand on her cheek with a sincere look.

"Don't make such a face. Just follow your own feelings, Ais. There's no need for any thinking, you know."

"My feelings…"

"That's right! There's no need for you to restrain yourself to just one goal. Remember that."

Ais could only do nothing but stare in wonder of her comrade's words.

That's right.

She was too engrossed on her single-mindedness. To her own personal goal that she didn't notice it right away. Such a simple thing that was easy to understand unlike her who came to realize it just now.

The boy.

She wanted to know. She wanted to find out what makes him different. Why he's putting such lengths to become stronger. Because there was no one she could relate to her situation, she finds it hard to talk to even to her closest friends that have been with her for so long.

That pink-haired adventurer shared the same with her. They both had a desire to become stronger and they both aimed at that goal from the start apart from fame and riches. They both had something in their desire to become stronger and she wanted to know why.

She wanted to get to know him.

Ais stood for a moment. A sea of silence enveloping her after that brief realization.

And in just a few seconds later, a smile found its way back to her as she expressed her gratitude towards the amazon with utmost appreciation.

"Thank you, Tione."

"Found what you're looking for?" She inquired.

"Yes." She said so with a clear mind.

She wanted to meet him again.

"Well, I guess that's good. Kept you a while but it seems like you're back to normal."

"I see. I'm sorry I made you worried, Tione."

"Oh, don't sweat it. If Ais is troubled then it would be hard for the whole team to carry out their duties to best of their abilities. You're like the very mood of the group so it's my job to cheer you up." She said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She replied.

"Nothing, nothing…" Tione sweated nervously, turning her gaze away from her for a moment.

At the same time, a familiar shout came from behind as they spotted Tiona and Lefiya coming into view.

"Ais! Tione! Where have you gone to? We were looking for you! One moment you were there and then in the next, you were gone!"

"T-That's right. I was worried too."

The two expressed their feelings as Ais stepped in front of them before making a light bow towards them.

"I'm sorry. For taking off so suddenly. And also… for making you two worry."

The two went silent for a moment before registering what just happened before erupting to a mix of different responses as Lefiya stuttered to herself while Tiona had the biggest grin on her face since ever.

"Wawawawa… There's nothing for you to apologize, Ais-san! I-In fact, I should be apologizing!" Lefiya flailed her arms in embarrassment.

"Waaaaaaaaah~ Ais is so cute." Tiona, on the other hand, hugged the blonde adventurer without warning, much to the elf's shock.

The group hung around for a while as they continued on their shopping. In the end, they were able to buy the clothes they wanted and finished just about everything.

They began to walk back to the direction leading to their home as they carried their stuff they bought for the day. It was still in the noon and the amount of people walking in the streets hasn't decreased one bit. Most of them, however, were heading to the dungeon.

Ais and the others walked at the opposite direction when the blonde girl glanced back to the towering structure at the center with anticipation.

"Off to the dungeon now?" Tione asked.

"Mhm…" She nodded.

"Well, that's fine but you could've invited us too if you want. You know you're not the only one who wants to get stronger, right?"

"Let me tag in too! It's been a while since we went together!" Tiona joined in, seemingly in it as well.

"I-If it's too much troubling. I'll just carry these back to the manor. I don't want to hinder you three on the way." Lefiya meekly answered.

"What are you talking about? The more the merrier. We'll meet up at the entrance once you finished, okay. Also, invite captain and the others too. I'm sure the Captain wouldn't resist a request from me." Tione asked.

"I-Iya… Asking them like that is a bit impossible." Lefiya deadpanned.

Eventually, the group split as Ais along with the Amazonesses turned their direction towards the Babel Tower where the dungeon is located.

"Haaaaaa… I just wished that Lefiya would try to be more open with us. It's not like we're in the 50th floor." Tiona said so with a remark.

"I understand where you're going but that's just how Lefiya is. She'll continue to grow more from now on."

"Yeah."

They arrived at the entrance but not long after they were greeted with a large line of adventurers that were standing at the seemingly crowd-like formation. The three hadn't noticed the entrance to be this crowded before and it seems like none of them were permitted to go to the dungeon for some reason.

"What's the commotion here? Why there are so many adventurers here? Another fight?" Tiona asked.

"Don't ask me. Maybe we can ask the people here." Tione proposed as she walked to a random adventurer who was standing and looking away from the entrance and towards the counter.

Placing a hand on his shoulder, he turned to look but was greeted by a fierce look from the Amazoness that quickly shattered his confidence.

"You… I wanted to know what's going on here. Mind you answer for us." She said so in a not-so-nice manner that scared the adventurer shitless.

"Kiiiiiii—Jormungand!" He paused, turning to the other two accomplices beside her. "A-Amazon and K-Kenki too?!"

"I asked what's going on around here? Why there are so many people here? I've never seen the counter to be filled this much."

"A-Ah, it's because there's something bad happened just now. A party of Level 1 adventurers arrived from the surface with severe wounds. The Guild staff is tending to them now so the queue is pretty much filled, you see." He explained, showing the commotion in front of them.

"Is what he said." Tione turned to the two. "It looks like another incident happened."

"I wonder what's the fuss about it. Care to find out?"

"Wouldn't hurt. What about you, Ais?"

The swordswoman nodded. "Fine with me."

"Alright." The group made their way to the center of the commotion.

Within moments, they made their way further and eventually spotted the cause of the incident.

There stood four adventurers who were laid to makeshift stretchers with each of them suffering severe injuries. The likes that no monster from the upper floors had given. A few guild staffs were present in the scene, tending to their wounds and some adventurers who were asked to help in the treating.

"W-What happened to them? They looked like they were brutally attacked." Tiona expressed her disdain of the sight.

At that moment, she also noticed that two of the adventurers were already beyond saving and stopped breathing. The other two were barely hanging on for dear life as they were desperately being treated as best they could from the other adventurers.

"What happened here?" Tione raised her voice a bit higher, catching the attention of some guild staff that took notice of their identities.

"Loki Familia?"

"What happened here? It looks like these aren't the workings of a monster from the Upper Floors."

"It is as you say. These adventurers were attacked on the Upper Floors. We don't know what happened. Only these people knew what took place and placed them into this kind of situation. We're currently trying our best to save them."

"She's awake!" Another guild staff shouted from the other side.

The group took notice and joined in the scene as Ais and the two circled at the conscious survivor who seemed to have undergone such a horrifying experience in her life.

"She's still in a critical state. We shouldn't force her too much. Focus on pressing the wound and apply some healing on it."

"Got it!"

When the adventurer tried to lift her hand, she was stopped by the guild staff who took hold of hers and reassured her.

"Rest. You're safe now. Don't force yourself."

However, the girl insisted as she turned her eyes over to the three with a pleading look.

"P...as… h...lp… them."

"She's trying to say something."

"P-Please… save everyone… a monster… There's still… four parties with us..."

Her speech was still vague but they were some bits that were readable and caught wind of.

"A monster attack. Which one? What about the others?" Tione asked.

Meanwhile, Ais was having a bad feeling. This was something similar to what she and the expedition encountered down at the 50th floor. The atmosphere, the dread, the timing. It's all too familiar.

Her thoughts were suddenly cut off when she heard the next words from the survivor.

"Black… dragon…"

"Black dragon. What's that supposed to mean?" They tried to ask but the girl couldn't muster enough strength to stay conscious and was succumbed to her wounds eventually.

"Shit! We're losing her! Get those healing potions real quick!"

The crowd grew noisy as the guild staffs continued to help them in the process.

On the other hand, Tiona and Tione noticed a different look from their fellow blonde friend who stood up just after hearing the last few words from the survivor just now. They watched her walk towards the nearest guild staff and began to speak.

"How many of them came out of the entrance?" She asked monotonously.

The staff, though surprised, tried to answer as best as she could. "U-Uhm, just four of them. Since then, we closed the entrance for any adventurers to venture further."

"Are there any signs of other adventurers still coming out from the 1st floor?"

"Well, that's…"

"Misha!" A voice called the staff from behind as she turned to her fellow staff member who just came from the entrance of the dungeon.

"Eina! What's the situation?"

"We found another group of survivors! They knew what happened! It's an Irregular!"

Collective forms of dread and shock filled the entire atmosphere as every other adventurer came to know the cause of the incident. Even Tiona and Tione found themselves in shock of the news of an Irregular emerging from the Upper Floors.

"This is bad! There are still some adventurers who weren't aware of the danger." Misha feared.

"Where's the Irregular last spotted?" Tiona asked.

"At the 12th floor."

Before Misha could even speak, she was cut off as Ais took off to the dungeon but not before leaving a few words as Tione and Tiona followed suit.

"Issue an emergency quest and have the Loki Familia deal with it."'



Natsu and Wendy straddled on their way as they finished their break and pressed on as usual. They made their way easily to the 11th floor and it wasn't till long when they found the entrance to the 12th floor.

"You're all set up?"

"Ready and prepared, Natsu-san."

The two made their last exchange as they close to the tunnel. However, as they approached, they noticed something wrong.

"What's that?" Wendy asked, failing to spot something from the distance which was seemingly approaching to them at a very slow rate.

With Natsu being the sharpest person in terms of hearing and sighting, he narrowed his eyelids as he focused his senses at the path in front of them, hoping an encounter before realizing what it is.

His eyes froze and it wasn't long when he saw it crashed to the ground, causing him to give chase in the process without warning.

"N-Natsu-san?!"

"It's a person!"

The girl stood in shock at the response before hastily followed the pinkette as they approached the person on sight.

Once arriving, they soon noticed the trail of blood that seemed to come from the person's midsection. Wendy fought the urge to look away since she wasn't accustomed to seeing a bloody sight in front of her. Instead, she only closed her eyes as Natsu flipped the person over, only to see a gaping hole where the blood came from.

"This is serious. With this kind of injury, he won't be able to survive without proper treatment. We need to close it somehow." Natsu began.

The person was still breathing but he showed no signs of speaking due to the immense pain and cold sensation that was creepy to him as death neared to him.

There was no time to waste.

"Wendy, I'm gonna try close to wound. Look away for a sec." Natsu turned to the girl in consideration.

"I-It's okay. If you were to close it with heat, you'll be giving him more pain than he already has. I'll pour some healing potion as you do it." She said defiantly.

"Are you sure?"

"I-I'm sure."

There was a short pause of hesitation from the pinkette before turning back to the wound with assurance.

"Alright, here goes."

Placing his hand just over the wound, he ignited his flames to a moderate manner as the wound seared high at the intense heat that sent huge waves of pain to the person, causing him to scream in the process.

"Sorry, but you'll have to endure it if you want to live." Natsu left him with some words as the scream continued. Wendy merely closed her eyes as the painful scream echoed at the tunnel for a moment whilst continuously pouring some healing potion over the wounded part to ease the pain and speed up the recovering process.

The flame closed the hole to its minimal size with the potion doing the rest of its work in closing it completely and stopped the bleeding altogether. The scream eventually faded as the person was able to endure it long enough and began stabilizing.

Natsu and Wendy cut some cloth from their bags and wrapped it around his stomach to keep the blood from dripping. They carefully carried the man and rested him towards the wall before applying some healing potions to some parts of his body to help him up.

Soon afterward, the effects of the potions have worked its best and the man flickered his eyes open for the first time without much effort.

"Don't move. You're still at your worst state. Move carelessly and the wound in your stomach would open up again. It's a miracle we got you on time and applied some healing potions to repair your damaged organ. If we were a few minutes late and you would've died, you know." Natsu warned.

"Here. Drink this." Wendy offered another healing potion to him to which he accepted.

"Where… where am I?" He asked, seemingly lightheaded to even remember to him.

"You're in the dungeon. We found you bleeding badly on the way here on the 11th floor." Natsu answered.

"Dungeon…" A long pause caught the person pondering for a moment when his memories suddenly caught in place and remembered what happened to him.

"W-We gotta get out of here right now!" The man started panicking.

Natsu and Wendy could only look back in confusion at this distress, totally unaware of the gravity of the situation they're in.

"Why?"

"A monster… There's a monster on the 12th floor… It killed my party and some others… If we knew that it's not just some ordinary monster, we would've fled as soon possible." He started trembling as his memories triggered some traumatic experience that caused him to become paranoid in the process. Enough so that made the two to stand up from their seat and look at the man in concern.

"A monster on the 12th floor?" Natsu said with slight surprise.

"You said about something about it being different. What kind of monster was it?" Wendy asked but was only met with a trembling silence with Natsu placing a hand on her shoulder, urging her not to pry any further. "I-I'm sorry…"

A long uncomfortable silence assailed in the air before Natsu stood up and faced the direction leading to the 12th floor.

"If a monster like that happens to be on the next floor then we should take it out. Leaving it be will only increase casualties, don't you think?" Natsu said but was stopped once again as the man shouted at him in horror.

"Did you hear what I just said?! That is no ordinary monster! That thing… we could only hope that some high-level adventurers would take care of it! It is not something a mere Level 1 adventurer can take it on alone! Let's get out of here before—"

A dreaded growl effectively cut the man short which also sent the two a chill down to their spine as they heard it from the walls just now. The atmosphere suddenly changed and faint sounds of tremor which appeared to be a stomp caught their ears as it grew louder and louder.

Natsu looked in the direction of the tunnel that led to the 12th floor which the sound and the roar originated from. Both of them have not heard such a sound from the monster that they encountered before.

No, this was different.

At that moment, the pinkette felt an uneasy feeling creeping up to his body as he continued to stare at the confines of the dark tunnel where the sounds grew even louder.

Something was approaching and it was no way in hell just a small monster.

The ground shook as stomps reverberated around them as if locking them in place in some imaginary container.

"N-Natsu-san. What was that?"

Wendy could not help but shiver as the growl grew closer to them. The growing fear was slowly eating at her as she watched at the shadows in front of them. It was then, a pair of red orbs caught their eyes as it emerged from the darkness.

And then, that is when they saw it.

A monster that they never imagined to have appeared in this part of the floor made its appearance.

Black tinted scales covered its body and its large four limbs supported a large body that spans over a few meters that were so big that it could not fit the small tunnel they were in. However, due to its supposed strength, it posed no problem for it to force itself inside. The walls shattered easily like loosened bricks as the monster stomped further in sight.

The man shuddered as soon as his eyes met the one responsible for his injuries.

"A-AaaAaaaahh—!" He shouted as the monster revealed itself to them, opening its mouth with razor-sharp fangs that were dipped with blood which seem to come from its victims.

When it noticed the two, it moved further as the ceiling around its position collapsed as it forced itself to move at the narrow confines, eventually spreading the cracks around it and make a bigger space for its size.

ROOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAARRRR*

A menacing roar erupted from its mouth as it echoed throughout the floor and left the two in a state of shock after witnessing its roar firsthand.

Natsu remembered this from his Goddess.

Listen, Natsu. The dungeon has a lot of mysteries surrounding it and while we try to keep records of its dangers, it will always find a way to introduce a new threat to any intruders who try to invade its domain. However, there is one danger that stands out above the rest. Do you know what it is…?

That's right.

He remembered it all too well.

An Irregular monster.

"An Irregular Infant Dragon!"



A/N: And there you have it. The first major arc of the story. I tried making some of the canon events on the danmachi and fit it with my own such as the expedition of the Loki Familia to have a familiarity on it but other than that, there's nothing much of a plan to keep relying on the canon as I will be planning some arcs on my own. Also, notice the vague depiction of Natsu's past? Unfortunately, I won't be able to answer to that as it had a valid reason to be made so. It'll be revealed later on as the story progressed. :)

What do you think of the chapter? Leave your thoughts on the reviews. It's deeply appreciated. Anyways, I'll see you all in the next chapter! Look forward to the rest of the arc on the next chapters. Peace!

- The wiErDos Association send their regards...