A Witch's Anger

Ais Wallenstein – an adventurer known as the Sword Princess – could only remain silent as her Familia laughed at the misfortune that befell a certain boy, one that reminded her of herself, back when she was still with her family.

She wanted to defend him, but have no clue how to do that. As much as she hated to admit it, Bete had a point. As always, he was really bad at stating something without offending someone.

Riveria tried to get them to stop, but it only resulted in Bete – for some reason – asking if she preferred dating him or the boy. Bete was obviously not an option. However, the same could be said for the boy, if for a slightly different reason.

Someone with the "black flame" like her didn't deserve to be on his side.

As all of this was occurring, Ais noticed that some people – at least two – were exiting the Hostess of Fertility from the periphery of her vision. Because she didn't recognize any of them, the blonde decided to not think much about it.

After an hour or two passed, the Loki Familia decided to finish the party and returned to their home. Because of his action, Bete was tied and dragged back to the mansion. They were barely exiting the pub when…

CAW CAW

"Kyaaaah!"

"Go away, you stupid birds!"

"Ouch! Do you have any idea how much does it take to – ouch!"

"Ah, don't take my hair!"

From the sky, ravens suddenly dived towards them and attacked the adventurers. Normally, dealing with them wouldn't be an issue, but because many of them had been drinking, the Loki Familia was having a hard time putting meaningful resistance. In fact, they were more often hitting their own rather than the birds.

"Watch your fist!"

"Gah, my face!"

Due to an incident in the past, Ais was not allowed to drink alcohol and was thus sober, allowing her to attack the ravens. She had to be careful thanks to her comrades being among the animals which also prevented her from using her sword.

All that she could do was smacking them away.

After more or less five minutes, the birds stopped attacking and flew away to the night sky. The blonde looked at her Familia and was glad – and not surprised – that they were fine. Considering their Levels, being attacked by normal animals wouldn't do much.

"Ais!" The girl turned her attention and saw an elf running towards her. "Are you alright?"

"Don't worry, Lefiya." She assured her. "I am – eh?"

"Ais?" It was at that point that the Sword Princess realized something.

Why none of the birds attacked her?

KNOCK KNOCK

Hearing that, she immediately woke up. Thanks to her experience in the Dungeon, it was not that hard for her to be awakened.

KNOCK KNOCK

"Ais, please wake up!" It was Lefiya. "We have an emergency!"

The girl immediately grabbed her sword and went towards the door. When she opened it, the adventurer saw the elf being out of her breath.

"Come on, let's go!"

Without giving any explanation, Lefiya grabbed her by the hand and dragged her from her room. As they ran through the Twilight Manor, Ais wondered about the nature of the emergency. Was there a Monster Rex-level monster appearing out of nowhere? Their financial status was actually in greater danger than they thought? Rakia deciding to invade early?

Wait, the last part couldn't be an emergency in the slightest.

On their way to their destination, the pair encountered Raul. Ais was about to greet him when a door beside the adventure suddenly went open, hitting him in the face and made him fall to the floor. She tried to approach him and check his condition, but Lefiya didn't let her go.

"Ignore him," The elf said. "There's nothing we can do for him until we solve this problem."

The Sword Princess became confused. What did the emergency have with helping Raul? He simply got hit by a door and fell, wasn't he?

When they arrived at the executive room, Ais saw that Loki, Riveria, Finn, and Gareth…

She had to blink upon seeing the dwarf was currently drinking a jug of alcohol, judging from the smell. While he loved alcohol just like many dwarves, Gareth never drink during an important meeting.

"Good. You're here." The goddess spoke to them. "Close the door and lock it."

After it was done, the red-haired woman cleared her throat. The expression on her face indicated how serious the situation was; it was rare for such a carefree goddess to act like that.

"Alright, I'll cut straight to the point." She stated. "Something…or someone is causing our Familia a problem."

"What the problem could be?" Ais asked.

Instead of answering, Loki pointed at one of her children, the dwarf. The blonde was confused at first, wondering what she meant. A few moments later, she realized what she meant.

"Something is causing Gareth to drink on the job." She declared.

"That is *hic* correct, young one." The man himself confirmed it. "For some reason, I could not hold myself from enjoying *hic* a nice glass of ale."

Ais immediately realized how bad the situation was. It would take a lot of alcohol to make a dwarf tipsy. Just how much Gareth had been drinking?

"He's not the only one," Loki said as she suddenly slammed the table.

"AAAAAHH!"

While the sound surprised her a bit, it was the voice of someone screaming that caught her attention the most. She looked around to find the source and saw…Finn trying to hide behind a bookcase.

Once again, Ais blinked several times before cleaning her eyes, making sure that she was not hallucinating.

"Riveria." The goddess spoke.

For some reason, the elf looked rather uncomfortable. The Sword Princess also noticed that Lefiya seemed to be preparing herself for something.

"Come on, talk," Loki ordered. "Ais needs to know the seriousness of the situation."

The green-haired woman looked around, trying to find a way to escape from her predicament. Seeing that there was no way for her to do that, she sighed and had a look as if she was facing an executioner.

"This fucking problem puts us in a very shitty situation." The elven royalty opened her mouth.

Compared to the first two situations, this one shocked her the most. The blonde looked at the brunette elf and saw that – despite her preparation – she was unable to hide how scandalous she felt. All of this caused Riveria to blush, turning her face into a tomato.

"See?" The goddess said. "Gareth has become a drunkard, Finn's a coward, and Riveria could not speak without cursing. And that's only our executives."

"Indeed." The Pallum stated, trying to calm himself down. "In his inebriated state, Gareth is a danger to both himself and others. Being a mage, Riveria's speech problem prevents her from using her spells. My…loss of bravery will affect our performance during an expedition."

"So, what caused the problem?" Ais immediately asked.

"We don't know," Loki stated. "That's why I am calling you, Ais. You, me, and Lefiya are – so far – the only members of the Familia that – for one reason or another – are not affected by whatever caused this."

The Sword Princess finally found out what her friend meant by "nothing could be done" for Raul; he was also affected by this issue.

BOOM

A tremor shook the mansion, sending Finn screaming as he went to hide under the desk. At first, she thought that there was an earthquake, but upon seeing how her goddess simply sighed, she had a doubt.

"In case you're wondering, that's likely Tione." She answered the question before it was asked. "Her issue is that she has worse temper than those with hair-trigger ones, especially after seeing what happened to Finn."

"What about Tiona?" She asked.

"She's the one holding back her sister," Loki replied. "I am not sure whether she's also affected or not, but since she has her own job, it's a moot point."

"Where should we start investigating?" Lefiya spoke.

"Our last visit is to the Hostess of Fertility. Let's start there." Finn suggested. "After that though…"

"Lefiya," Riveria joined the conversation. "Try to visit that shitty old…I mean, that asshole…you know what I fucking mean!"

"Y-Yes…" No matter what she did, the brunette elf couldn't help but keep getting shocked.

"Try to *hic* visit Amid." The dwarf suggested. "She might *hic* can help. You never know."

"That settles it then." The goddess clapped her hands. "Let's go!"

Three people left the room, leaving behind the executives who closed the door and then locking it. Ais supposed that made sense; they didn't want anyone to enter the room and saw their condition. From what she remembered, Finn and Riveria put a lot of effort into maintaining their images. The former wanted to become the idol of the Pallum race and it was just a natural thing for the latter.

The trio of goddess, elf, and human was just about to exit the Twilight Manor when they heard a commotion behind them. They turned their heads to see it, but without any warning, Loki and Lefiya closed Ais' eyes.

"Eh?"

"Ais, whatever you do, don't look!" The brunette exclaimed.

"Get him away from here before he tainted Ais' mind!" The red head gave the order.

"Woof, woof!"

From the voice, it was Bete who made it. She realized that she had no idea what issue he was facing.

"Come on, you stupid dog! Get over here!"

"We have a treat for – ah, no, don't you dare to piss that statue!"

"Woof!"

Just from that, the Sword Princess agreed that it was for the best that she didn't saw any of this.

"Lady Riveria is what?!"

When Ryuu Lyon was preparing the pun for daytime service, the place received a visit from Goddess Loki and two of her children, Ais Wallenstein and Lefiya Viridis. They informed her that something had caused…things to happen in their Familia and – being the last place that the Loki Familia visited yesterday – they were here to do some investigation.

"I was there. I saw it with my own eyes. I heard it with my won ears." The brunette elf stated, looking traumatized. "I still having a hard time believing that it happened."

"That's…bad." The blonde elf was speechless.

Riveria Ljos Alf was someone that many elves looked up to. If the words spread that she was…talking in a very crude way, then…Ryuu didn't even want to imagine it.

"That is why we're here," Loki stated. "So, did you notice if anything strange happening last night?"

The waitress put her hand on her chin, trying to remember everything that happened that night. There was nothing special, as far as she could recall. There was nothing wrong with the food and drink that they served considering that they received no complaints. There were customers – both new and old – that she and others served throughout the night.

Wait, there was that one customer; that woman who threatened Syr for the "crime" of being suspicious. Not only that, from the way that woman spoke to her, she seemed to hold the Elves in a negative light. Could she be the one…?

No. According to Loki, the problem was not limited by race. Everyone – human, dwarf, pallum, elf, amazon – was equally affected with three exceptions and one of them was an elf. The chance for that was low.

Besides, she doubted that the boy – the one who took Syr's interest – would let that happened. She might not know him personally, but he was willing to protest what that woman was doing, despite being his teammate.

"Unfortunately," Ryuu said. "I have no information to offer you."

"Well, I suppose I should've expected that." The goddess stated. "There's no way it's going to be that easy."

"Sorry that I couldn't help much." She bowed.

"I-It's alright, Miss Lyon," Lefiya assured. "I am sure we can solve this problem in the end."

"Oh? That's an interesting situation you find yourself in."

With the visit to the Hostess of Fertility being fruitless, the trio decided to visit the pharmacy of Dian Cecht Familia due to being the closest one to the pub. Upon entering the building, they were immediately greeted by the famous healer Amid Teasanare.

"Do you have any idea what might happen, Amid?" The brunette elf asked.

"Hmm…" The woman gave a deep thought. "I know some potions that caused some of the effects that you describe me; making people fear anything and everything, losing any control of one's temper, dumbing down one's intelligence."

"But?" Ais noticed that there was hesitation in her voice.

"But other effects that you told me…for example, Raul's problem seems to be that he has very rotten luck. That is not something any potion could cause, to say the least. However…"

"Oh?" Loki paid closer attention.

"Perhaps it's a hex."

"Hex?" Lefiya muttered the word. "As in, magic that causes bad things to people?"

She had heard about it back in her village, how sometimes things like disease or famine happen not because of natural causes, but because something or someone was causing it through the usage of magic. The Elves didn't like that kind of magic since – more often than not – it involved disturbing the balance of nature and hurting the spirits.

"Indeed. As such, there's not much that I could do to help." Amid stated. "Although, maybe I could create some potions that would lessen the effect."

"That will be appreciated." Ais smiled.

"Well, if that's all," The red-haired goddess said. "Let's go to our last destination."

"Ohohohoho! Ohohoho!"

"This is not something funny, Miss Lenoa." The elf said as she sighed.

"Forgive me, little girl. It's not every day you heard Riveria being cursed to speak in profanity." The old witch said before laughing again. "Ohohoho!"

The trio waited as the mage satisfied herself with the thought. Once it was done, she cleared her throat before speaking to them.

"Anyway, everything you have told to me…all of them indicates the usage of hex," Lenoa said. "Very interesting, if you ask me."

"Why is that?" Lefiya asked.

"As you know, the introduction of Falna caused many magic to see less usage due to being more difficult to use and weaker to boot. Hex is one of them." The witch explained. "Yet now you told me that there's a hex user that manages to influence some of the best adventurers in Orario, especially Riveria Ljos Alf."

The brunette understood what she meant. Elves were naturally talented in the fields of magic. That was even more so for Riveria who was a High Elf. This meant that whoever put a hex on her – and thereby the rest of Loki Familia – was someone equal or even more powerful than her.

Since the green-haired elf was Level 6, they could start from there and ignore those with lower Levels than her.

"Is there something that you could do about it?" Loki asked.

"Hmm, give me a minute." Lenoa went to the back of her shop. "I might have something that could help."

As the old woman searched for the solution, Lefiya looked around the place, doing some window shopping. There might be some interesting artifacts that would interest her. While she likely didn't have enough money to buy them, that didn't mean she could…

"Eh?" The elf turned her head back to an artifact that she had just seen.

It was a spell stone, something that was essential for magic users for it was thanks to this item that they were able to easily gather magic power and change it into a spell's power. She looked at the price tag of the stone, unable to believe the numbers that were on it.

"It's…" She was surprised, for the lack of a better word. "It's three times more expensive than usual!"

"Oho, you have good eyes, little girl."

Lefiya turned her head and saw Leona had returned with scrolls in her hands.

"Indeed, it might look expensive, but its purity…its durability…" The old woman performed a chef kiss. "Without any doubt, I was blessed by the gods of fortune that day."

"Hmm," The elf remembered that spell stones were something only mages could create. "What did you know about the one who gave this to you?"

"Sadly, not much. That day is also the first time she ever visited me." Leona said. "I don't even know her face for she was wearing a black veil; the one used by women when they are in a mourning period."

"So be it," Loki stated. "Anyway, do you have a solution for our problem?"

"Most likely." She showed them the scrolls. "You won't like it."

Curious by what she meant, the Thousand Elf took one of the scrolls and opened it. She almost dropped it upon realizing the reason. Her two fellow Familia members did the same thing and had the same reaction.

"Oi, oi, oi," The goddess started to sweat. "There's no way we could afford this!"

Well, they could, but that would leave the Loki Familia in a very bad financial situation. As in, so bad that their supporters might need to farm in the middle floors to make sure they didn't go bankrupt due to daily expenses.

"Considering what you're dealing with, you need to use the best solutions to solve it." The witch said. "And while not always the case, the best is often the most expensive."

"Damn it," The red head cursed. "We're in catch-22."

As stated above, getting rid of the hex would put the Loki Familia in a bad situation. However, not doing that meant the members could not go to the Dungeon and gain money, meaning their treasury would be slowly but steadily depleted.

Either way, they were going to lose money.

"Um," Lefiya was still reeling from the shock. "Can…can you give us some time, Miss Leona?"

"Go ahead, take all your time." The witch replied. "But beware, the moment you agree to do this, you will only have a day to cancel it without having to pay a penalty."

"We will make sure to think about it deeply," Loki stated.

After the last visit, the trio decided to head home, carrying the scrolls that Leona had given them. They hope that – after a meeting with the executives – they would have an idea on how to proceed.

"Uuuh, many of these items can be acquired by us." The elf said as she looked at one scroll after another. "Of course, with the condition of our Familia, we have to buy them and it will be expensive."

"Can't the two of us just go there?" Ais suggested.

"Nu-uh. No way." The goddess put her foot down at the idea. "No matter how strong you are, going to the floors lower than Under Resort with only one partner is a recipe for disaster."

"That means we really have to pay for them…" Lefiya sighed.

"Money can be easily gained," Loki said. "The same could not be said for lives."

When they returned to their home, the brunette was the closest to the door. When she opened it, something emerged from the inside of the building.

"Ah, stop…!"

Before anyone could react, it hit Ais, causing her to fall to the cobbled street. It was then followed by the thing licking her face repeatedly.

"A dog?" The action reminded her of the animal. "No, wait, there's something…"

"Get away from Ais, you stupid dog!" Lefiya exclaimed as she smacked the thing away with her staff. "Ais, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I am…" The blonde then made the mistake of looking at the thing.

As it turned out, it was not a "thing," but rather a "person." The person in question was none other than Bete Loga.

He was currently butt-naked.

"A-Ais?" Fear started to grow in the heart of the elf when she saw a traumatized look appearing on the face of someone she admired.

"I need a bath." The Sword Princess declared. "And hiding place."

Meanwhile, at a certain desolated building…

When she emerged from the church, Hestia covered her eyes, waiting for them to get used to the bright sunlight. Once they did, she was about to depart to her work place when she noticed something happening beside the building.

It was Morgan…currently feeding several ravens. The sight was so unusual that the goddess remained where she stood, up until the Servant noticed it.

"Good morning, Lady Hestia." She greeted her. "Is there something wrong?"

"Ah, nothing." The black-haired woman told her. "I am just…surprised seeing you taking care of those birds."

"Usually, I won't." The Berserker stated as she rubbed one of the animals. "However, they have been helping me a lot for a problem last night. It's only right that I repay them."

"Last night?" Hestia tried to remember what she meant. "Oh, that. Well, as I said, as long as no building becomes a crater or people being incinerated into ashes, I will tolerate it."

Not out of the kindness of her heart, oh no. She would have no problem with Morgan annihilating the Loki Familia for what they did to her boy. Unfortunately, it would bring way too many problems in their direction. The consequence was just not worth it.

Furthermore, she doubted Bell would agree with such an action.

"You have nothing to worry about, Lady Hestia." The Servant declared. "I have no intention of exterminating that Familia."

"Eh?" She didn't look convinced. "No offense, Morgan, but that doesn't sound like you."

"Indeed, it is not. Had the situation been different, the Loki Familia will be no more, regardless of the collateral damage." She stated. "However, this action, I do it in the name of my husband. What I did is tame compared to things that I've done and he will still disagree. That's just the kind of person he is. For his sake, I will not commit an action that causes him an even bigger pain."

The Goddess of the Hearth could not help but smile at the statement. She admitted that she was of the opinion that the relationship between Bell and Morgan was rocky and…quite unusual, to put it simply. The fact that the two of them got married upon meeting each other for the first time was just complicating the issue.

Yet there was no doubt that the two of them were giving their best. It was quite unorthodox in how they did it; Bell trying to rein in the worst of Morgan's personality and the latter wanting the former to be able to accept intimacy without being afraid. But then again, what spouse wanted their partner to fall to the darkness in their heart? What spouse wanted their partner to have difficulty in being affectionate?

"Besides," Morgan made a smile that caused the hair on the goddess' neck to raise. "Death will be too quick of a fate for what they did to my husband."

"Yeah, she's a witch, alright?" Hestia thought before getting rid of it. "Say, Morgan, Bell is still in his bed. After you're done with the birds, take a look at him, alright?"

"Of course." She answered simply.

Satisfied with the answer, the goddess turned around and walked towards her destination.

Everything is set and ready.

She makes sure that she has enough food for her journey. At least enough for her to reach a settlement of which she could acquire more. The sword on her back is well-polished and sharpened. The Spear of Selection is in a prime condition.

Where to go first though? And what will be her first objective?

She decides that it will be to search for companions. Just because she's destined to save Britain, doesn't mean she has to do it alone. Plus, it will make things more fun if she has friends on her side.

She looks at the scenery of her home, Orkney. She smiled yet there's a hint of sadness on it. It will be a long time until she could return.

Thus, Tonelico the Savior begins the first step in her journey.

When his eyes slowly opened, Bell noticed that he was lying on his bed. As he rose, he tried to remember the dream that he had.

"Who…is…Tonelico…?"

Her face reminded him of someone, but every time he tried to remember it, something prevented him from doing that.

"You're awake."

The boy turned his head and saw that it was Morgan who called him. She slowly approached her husband and – after being close enough – checked upon him.

"You seem to be fine." She stated. "Despite what happened last night, there's nothing wrong with you."

"Last night?" The albino tried to remember what she meant. "Ah…"

The Hostess of Fertility. She must be talking about what happened there. Of how the man said cruel things about him. Cruel, yet Bell couldn't help but feel that there was a hint of truth in his words.

"Don't think too much about it." His wife realized what he was thinking. "Some people are simply cruel by nature."

He nodded. Nonetheless, the words kept reverberating in his mind.

"Some weak little rookie!"

"Trembling pitifully and stone-faced!"

"That tomato brat screamed and run away!"

"Morgan." He opened his mouth. He needed to let this out of his heart.

"Hm?" She didn't show any reaction.

"What that…wolf man said…" The boy slowly said it. "Do you think…there's a truth…in his words…?"

Instead of answering directly, the Servant closed her eyes, seemingly in deep contemplation.

"He said that you are weak; that you are inexperienced; that you freeze in the face of danger; that you run away from your rescuer." She listed it off. "From what I know about you – and what I saw back then – there's little doubt of the veracity of this statement."

He didn't know why, but it felt more painful when she was the one who said that. His spirit was withering in the face of that.

"What of it?"

Of all the things that he expected for her to say, that was definitely not one of them.

"W-What?"

"I ask, what of it? If you're weak, then become stronger. If you're inexperienced, then go gain more experience. If you freeze in the face of danger, then strengthen your heart. If you run away from your rescuer…" She sighed. "Well, I suppose you're a lost cause in regards to women."

"M-Morgan!" He exclaimed while blushing. He was not that hopeless with girls! "You said that as if it's easy to do."

"I do not. Then again, 'difficult' and 'impossible' are not the same thing, last time I check." His wife replied. "Besides, aren't you currently in the same place as your idols?"

"Eh?"

"Did the Knight Galahad become a knight overnight? Wasn't Georgios nothing but ordinary soldier before the slaying of the dragon at Silene Lake?" Her tone was still as monotone as ever, yet there was encouragement in them. "Epimetheus' journey could be considered as nothing but failure, yet his story continues to inspire many to this day. Argonaut is nothing but a fool, yet there's a reason people called him 'the hero of the dawn.'

"So, tell me, as of this moment, what's the difference between you and them?"

The words were – without any doubt – effective. The light in the eyes of Bell Cranel – his boundless cheerfulness and optimism – had returned. Whatever that werewolf said about him, it no longer mattered now.

All that Bell needed to do was to turn what he said into falsehood.

"Thank you, Morgan." He said softly. "If you're not here, I might do something reckless, like diving deep into the Dungeon or something."

"There's no need for that." She replied. "It's the job of the wife to take care of her husband when he's down."

Then, without any warning, the woman gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"When you're ready for today, meet me beside the building." The Servant stated before exiting the room.

Still sitting on his bed, Bell slowly touch his forehead, as if unable to believe what had just happened. Blushes appeared on his cheeks as he let his mind wander away.

Thanks to that, it took him half an hour to get ready, causing him to receive a scolding from her.

Answers to some reviews:

ObsidianUnknown66: Well, Ryuu once faced powerful adversaries like – for example – Alfia. So, she knows that she's likely facing a strong opponent.

However, Ryuu is like Bell in that regard; she would face anything for her dear friends.

furukawa023: Some of her Servant's Skills are simply not recorded in the Falna. It would be too much and excessive.

For example, her Charisma of Desire Skill is not considered a "Skill" by Falna due to it simply her being charismatic.

cybresamurai: No, her Madness Enhancement is not recorded in the Falna. She still has it as a Berserker-class Servant.

Phantom Thief of Hearts: If everything goes as planned, the next chapter will reveal the result of Morgan's search.

Well, this wouldn't be the last time Morgan disturb her plans 😉

midnightson41: Nah, no plan for lemon. Not very good at making it. Might make some "implication" though, if you get what I mean.

For Hestia, that's one of them. There's another. If everything goes as planned, the next chapter should reveal it.

Fan of Fanfics21: Oh, yes. Bell will get the dream and sees Morgan's past.

Especially the memory of how Morgan lost her friends and met her end. I am so evil~

Reader: Huh, forget about that part. Might show Bell having it in a later chapter.

JtBlack-Hawk3198: Hmm…😊

Azure-Star-Dragon: Oh, there won't be any hiding from her. Very hard to do that when Morgan had to deal with Fae shenanigans daily.

guest: Well, to put it simply, some conflicts cannot be solved with brute force alone, especially with someone as kind-hearted as Bell.

Ebuc: To put it simply, yes. She has been described as more machine than human.

Guest: Bell's 14? I thought he's 15.

Eh, let's just say he's 15 and leave it at that. Should be considered old enough to marry, especially in a world as dangerous as Danmachi, where danger is everywhere.

And it's done.

Now, some bad news. From this point on, it's going to take longer for the next update to be finished. I need to get back to the drawing board and create the plot of how the story will proceed.

If you have a question or suggestion, feel free to tell me.

Review, please!