I do not own DanMachi.
Chapter 1: Orario's new Hero
It all started when a young boy named Bell wanted to find a meaning in his life. After the horrible news of the disappearance and possible death of his grandfather, he was in despair. He respected his grandfather and did everything he asked him to do, yet cruel destiny took him away. Following 2 days of existential dread and consolation from other villagers, Bell decided to climb the nearby hill that locals jokingly called "The Mountain" to find the answers to all questions he had.
It was extremely sunny day with an abnormally strong wind. The combined smell of sand, leaves, and dirt brought by the wind for some reason reminded him about his grandfather. He came here for answers, uncertain about what to do, when he heard a very quiet voice saying "Orario".
In an instant, he remembered about all the stories his grandfather talked about – the path one has to take to become a hero and an adventurer, the girls that needed to be saved, even about more embarrassing stories that Bell wanted to forget about. He understood the meaning of this "vision" and decided that he wanted to become a hero, not only because he wanted to fulfill his dreams but also to pay respect to his, sometimes eccentric, grandfather who took care of him when he lost his parents.
1 week later. Orario's main gate.
After 1 week on the road, Bell was thoroughly exhausted. The only thing that saved him from the hardships of travel was the magnificent sight of Orario. When he saw the glorious gates of the cosmopolitan city still several miles away, he felt like someone infused him with a new life.
After passing through and answering the questions from guards and with just 8,000 vals that he had left, he wanted to find a place to stay at first. He asked locals where one can stay for a night with a reasonable price and found the tavern that few of them talked about. City seemed full of life and was bigger than Bell anticipated. Even though majority of whom he asked for advice laughed at his goal to become an adventurer while sarcastically saying "Good luck!", he knew that he would have to at least give it a shot. From the looks of the numerous grunts that frequented the streets during the day, his small frame made his confidence also take a small hit.
When he was about to go to sleep after dropping all his items in tavern room, he tried to recollect everything that happened that day and remembered the only girl who didn't drop a single hint of disrespect or laughter at him – girl with glasses, aqua blue hair, cyan-blue eyes with a strange pair of shoes that had wings on them. He was so mesmerized by her beauty at that moment that he even forgot what she told him. When he tried to remember her facial features or what she said, he was already far too exhausted and started snoring.
Next 2 days
As he woke up, Bell, full of determination, decided to join a "Familia". He already heard about Loki and Freya Familias being the strongest Familias around the town and decided to approach them as a last resort because he understood that there would hardly be any chance that they would accept him.
After the whole day full of rejections, Bell felt how his confidence diminished really fast. He did want to become a hero in Orario and save his princess, just like his grandfather taught him, but he didn't think that he would be rejected everywhere and have door slammed in his face a few times.
The fact that he saw a lot of cute girls only made him think even worse about himself. With all his dreams crushed, he was like a lost puppy when he was found by Hestia on the street.
After joining her Familia, Bell went to the Guild and registered as a first member of Hestia Familia, only to be on the brink of death in just 2 weeks.
Dungeon. 5th floor
"Urrroooooarrrr!"
"Why did I even do this? I will now die from this minotaur."
"GROOOOOOOOOOAGH!"
"Sorry grandpa, but I am just a fool. I will get no fame and no girls that I will princess carry after victory over monster."
"I guess this is the end result of my foolishness."
When minotaur was about to smash Bell's head with his massive, red, smelly hoof, the muscular body of the minotaur stopped moving as if it was frozen. Bell tried to cover his face out of sheer instinct.
"Aaaaaaaagh…. A?"
Questioning if he already died, and this is just his brain playing dirty tricks with him, Bell removed his hands from his face and looked up.
He recalled that he heard some loud explosion sound just before minotaur stopped moving and saw what looked like an impact crater on the back of minotaur's neck. In the next moment, minotaur's body turns into a pile of ash and a big magic crystal along with minotaur horn drop item fall on the ground.
Barely able to move from the shock he just experienced, Bell instantly recognized the girl that he met just few weeks ago.
"Are you okay?" said the girl with a motherly look on her face.
Bell however thought that she was a divine angel.
With the body that could rival some goddesses, Asfi of Hermes Familia stood on her heels in front of the Bell.
In that moment she thought that he looked familiar to her, though she just assumed it was a mere coincidence.
With her glasses making her look a lot more cute and innocent than any other girl, Bell was just stuck in the moment before he finally realized that he has to answer the question she just asked.
He tried to utter something, before his heart took over his body. His primal instincts told him that he wasn't impressing her in any way along with the mental image of his grandfather disappointed in him, so to recollect himself he just dashed off from her.
"Hmmmm. He looked like rabbit when he dashed off. That white hair and red eyes, where have I seen him?" thought Asfi when turning around and going back to her initial destination.
"Anyways, what did I even come to dungeon for again …" she said as she went to lower levels in the search of materials for her crafts as she initially intended before hearing distress sounds on the level 5 as she passed through it.
On her way back out of the room, she saw Loki Familia members Bete and Riveria looking at her as they were happy that someone took care of that last escaped minotaur before someone was injured.
"Hi Asfi, sorry about this minotaur. We accidentally let them run away and it is totally our fault." said Riveria with a genuinely apologetic voice.
"No worries, Riveria. I just saved that white hair guy, so no one was injured."
"Haha, are you talking about that trash kid who flew past us? No wonder he had to wait to be saved considering how pathetic he looked. He will probably die in the dungeon by the next week." Bete's words didn't have any impact on Asfi as she was already zoned out thinking about materials for her crafts.
Riveria, on the other hand, hit Bete with her staff and reminded him that it was their fault that a young adventurer had to fight off minotaur on a lower 5th floor. She made a stoic, scolding face that helped her to get her "Mama" title, as Bete said with anger in his voice:
"I get it, old hag. I get it. It was our fault." Bete made accent on the word our so that he can at least spite Riveria since he can't directly confront her.
Guild's HQ, same day
"You went, WHERE?!" said Eina with her scream so loud, everyone in the lobby turned their faces to Bell.
"I am sorrryyyyyyy, I promise not to go so deep again, Ms Eina" said Bell as if his own mother was scolding him at that moment.
After she was finished scolding him, Bell asked her the most important question he wanted to ask:
"So, Eina, do you by any chance know what the name of the girl with shoes that have wings and cute glasses is?" said Bell as he looked away and blushed slightly.
"Ohhh, I see. Did you already fall in love with a girl you just met in the dungeon?" she said while smiling.
"What?! Of course not! I am just asking because she saved me, and I wanted to thank her for that." he asked as his face turned as red as tomato.
"Hmmmm, is that really it, Bell?"
"Welllllllllll, maybe there is something more, but …" his face turned even redder than it was before when he realized that he accidentally confessed his feelings to Asfi to Eina.
"Ohhhh, I see. There is nothing wrong with trying to get a girl (she said as she blushed), but I can't really talk about too much about other adventurers. But I do know who you are probably talking about."
"Thank you, Ms Eina" he said as he moved closer to her and started listening really carefully with his right ear.
"Her name is Asfi Al Andromeda and she is a captain of the Hermes Familia. She specializes in making items and is in fact quite famous for it. I can't say much more than that but the interesting thing about Hermes Familia is that they don't report level ups to the Guild, so I don't know what level she is, but she is probably a level 4 by this point."
"Do you know what she likes, or where she would usually shop if she specializes in making items?" said Bell with a face full of hope.
"I wish only best for you Bell, but you would probably be better of by forgetting about her. As a famous item maker here in Orario she probably already has a boyfriend who is a high level adventurer. Besides, she is a captain of Familia. I don't think she would be really interested in a level 1 from a weak.. [She panicked and corrected herself] I mean newly established Familia…" when she said the last phrase, she instantly knew that she committed fatal mistake as she saw Bell's face previously full of enthusiasm, now turning pale and sad.
"But…. But…" he wanted to say something, but deep inside he understood the grim reality of the situation.
Eina panicked as she now made the adventurer who she liked so much, unable to even utter a single word.
"You know, Bell. I think … I think if you would find some really rare item that she would need, then she probably would notice you. I know that she would." She said with a voice that she herself thought was more like a good-sounding lie, than truth. As a level 1 adventurer, he would never get an item that a captain of Hermes Familia can't get.
She thought that he most likely would try to find something rare, fail, and move on with his life.
But it is Bell Cranel who we are talking about, so she would never guess what he already planned to do.
1 day later. Somewhere deeper than 5th level of the dungeon.
"AAAAAAAAAAGH, someone help me!"