I appreciate the feedback.
This series has its flaws. Some of which are by design and will be addressed as I continue to weave my story.
Some notable ones a few might point out will be addressed at the end of this chapter. In any case, enjoy this setup chapter while I suffer at all angles.
EDIT: Changed a few sentences
Chapter 3:
It was a dreamless sleep that Bell was gently awakened from by the sensation of someone gently stroking his head.
He opened his eyes and blinked away the blurriness. Sitting on the corner of the bed was Melina, a young woman with very pale red hair and a tattoo over her left closed eye. Her sudden appearance was a huge shock to Bell as they haven't talked to each other ever since he'd taken up the Frenzied Flame to burn the Erdtree. Even after removing its influence from his very being using Miquella's Needle, she remained elusive.
"Meli-!"
Melina quickly put a finger over his lips and made a shush gesture. She then placed her hands on the side of his head to lift and lay him onto her lap. It was rather nostalgic as she used to do this to put him at ease when he was trying to adjust himself to the cruel and frightening world that he had found himself in.
After a moment of silence, Melina broke the fragile silence of the night.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?" She asked in a soft voice.
"Hai. It has." Another bout of silence before Bell asked his most pressing question. "Are you… Still mad at me?"
"My anger, born from worry, has long been quenched. My silence was of guilt."
"There's nothing to be guilty of. You told me of others who tried to save their maidens and failed. You were only afraid for my well-being and… I never got the chance to thank you for it. For everything you've done for me."
Melina gave the boy a small smile. She held her hand on his cheek, looking deeply into his eyes.
"Both forgiven and thanked. I too, return the kindness you have always shown me. When we first met, you were but a mere child. Lost and confused. You suffered greatly for things you were not at fault for, preyed upon by those once greater than you, and were hardly a warrior of any caliber. Yet you remained unbroken and unyielding even in your darkest time. Clear is your eyes. Clear is your soul. A miracle you remained what you were."
"I couldn't have done it without you."
Without Melina, he wouldn't have gotten to where he is now. The knowledge of the Lands Between, his strength, her companionship – It was her who provided and guided him more than any other individual. He was forever in her debt.
"You humble me, but now it is my turn to humble you. It is you who saved me from sacrificing myself to light the Erdtree. Even when I opposed it, even when consumed by the Frenzied Flame, your will remained uncorrupted and unbroken. You are my hero, as you had always desired; shared with me your thoughts, ambitions, and principles you would follow. For that, I am eternally grateful."
Bell took a while to process her words before bashfully smiling.
"Eheh. Thanks."
"My purpose was to be taken to the Erdtree. It has been done and now I am without purpose. Still, I shall continue to serve you as I always have, even if my services are no longer needed."
Bell sat up and turned to face her all while sporting a frown.
"That won't do. Why not try finding something else to do? The world here has so many interesting things to explore. I'm sure you'll find something."
Against Bell's serious, albeit adorable expression, Melina relented.
"If you insist. I shall. Though I will admit, it is a daunting task even though it holds no consequences."
"Our paths will be of fear, doubt, and loneliness. That's what Ranni said to me when I decided to help her replace the previous order. But that doesn't mean we truly have to go through it alone if we can help it."
The three of them will be strangers in unfamiliar lands with their own doubts and fears; isolated in a sense from its inhabitants, but they won't be truly alone.
"As is the order she has envisioned." Melina patted her lap. "Now, lay down. There is something I wish to see."
"Um, okay." He did what he was told. "What are you…" His shirt was suddenly pulled up and he could feel her hands grazing his burned scars. "Eep! M-Melina? That kinda tickles."
"The brand that has been inflicted upon you… Did you not know that once you are freed of its influence, you can remove its mark should you wish now that you are beyond what you once were?"
"It never really bothered me after I used Miquella's Needle to get rid of it."
Bell moved his hand to pick at his burned scars out of curiosity making Melina stop him.
"Do not pick at it, and I'd ask that you will see it heal. It is best to rid all of its influence, mundane it may seem."
"I can do that."
"That is all that I ask of you. I shall not hold you from your well-deserved rest no more." She put her hands over his eyes. "I bid you a fair night's rest."
/-/
The Hostess of Fertility is a well-known pub in Orario owned and operated by Mia Grand. A former adventurer from Freya Familia. The pub caters to citizens during the afternoon and adventurers during the night. Their menu and prices change between the two times.
"Grrah! That damn rabbit boy still pisses me off!" A drunk Bete slammed his mug of alcohol down onto the table and snarled unintelligibly.
He still couldn't get over the fact that a nobody was able to effortlessly steal kill the enhanced minotaur after all their efforts to weaken it. Not only did the white-haired boy break an important unspoken rule about never stealing someone else's prey, but he did so in the face of Loki Familia's high-class adventurers! It's a huge blow to his pride and his familia!
"Awww. Don't be so angry, Bete." A Goddess with red hair and shifty eyes poked the werewolf on the cheek. This is Loki. The Trickster Goddess. "At least your Basic Abilities went up quite a bit. It's just an enhanced species from the upper floors that caught everyone off guard. Let it go. Let it go."
"Grrr! If we had killed it, my status would have gone up more!"
Gareth Landrock, a dwarf possessing brown eyes and long brown hair along with a beard of the same color, planted a mug of potent ale in front of Bete. It should be enough to muddle Bete's anger or make it worst, in which case Loki Familia can gag and tie up the werewolf with ease.
"Ay, lad. Have some of this. Strong stuff."
Bete grunted and downed the entire drink. The werewolf froze in place, then faceplanted onto the table.
"Finally, he shuts up." Tione glared at Bete's wasted form. "Though I will agree… It does leave a bad taste in my mouth to get shown up by someone else."
Riveria set down her tea, remaining in her elegant posture.
"The situation wasn't in our favor. We had other familia members and assets to take into consideration. The boy acted with good intentions and likely did not notice who we are. That isn't even concerning the abnormal occurrence that was felt throughout the entire floor."
They had reported it to the Guild and were assured it'll be looked into, though it's unlikely they'll learn something new. Evidence and details are hard to procure in the Dungeon even on the upper floors.
"Speaking of abnormal occurrence, Finn's thumb 'ere was acting up. Prob before yer encounter with the beast."
Finn Deimne, a pallum with medium-length scruffy blonde hair and blue eyes with a fair skin tone, was clenching one of his fists, thumb squeezed in his palm.
"My thumb went numb for a second when I was writing." The boyish pallum flexed his hand. "At first, I thought it could be nerve damage. Turns out I was wrong hearing your story."
Finn has a pretty good intuition which manifests as his thumb throbbing. It warns him about imminent threats, with the pain increasing in proportion to the level of the threat, allowing him to prepare countermeasures against them. Although most of the time it just warns him about threats, it also helps him with other things, such as when it helped him decide which Familia to join.
"Hoh. Sounds like it was serious." Loki nodded sagely. "Still… An enhanced species of a minotaur that gave my precious children a hard time. Must have been one tough monster."
"It was as Tiona remarked: It felt more like a Monster Rex than anything else. The fact that it prioritized consuming magic stones then to fight us was a odd behavior, pragmatic almost." Riveria paused, then continued. "No… It felt almost desperate, but that's just my take on it."
"Desperate to get stronger." Ais quietly said from her seat.
Everyone turned to the blond-haired girl. Her doll face was blank as always and she stared aimlessly into her drink.
"Is something wrong, Ais?" Lefiya asked worryingly.
Tiona nodded. "Yeah. You've been kinda out of it all day now."
"Oh, no! Is my dear Ais-Ais feeling unwell?!" Loki appeared behind Ais. A perverted look on the Goddess's face. "Let me make you feel bett – HRUK?!"
Loki was sent flying by a backhand from Ais while she continued to stare at her reflection in her drink. Everybody ignored their Goddess antics but showed a bit of concern for Ais. The girl was more withdrawn than normal, almost like she was daydreaming at times.
"I am fine."
Despite saying that, Ais couldn't help but think back to the white-haired boy. The scene where he rushed to kill the enhanced species kept replaying in her mind, particularly when the boy's image overlapped with that of her father. Why does her mind keep going back to that moment?
Tiona studied Ais' emotionless expression before grinning. The amazoness put on her detective deduction face, eyes glinting with mischief.
"Could it be? Ais has finally found her crush?"
"Crush?"
Ais looked quizzically at her friend. Bete groggily mumbled something about weaklings before dozing off while Loki instantly recovered from her injuries out of sheer shock.
"Yes! That white-haired boy has gotten your attention." Tiona put a hand around Ais and pulled her close. "Am I right?"
"Yes?"
"W-what?!" Loki scrambled to her feet. "Nooo! This can't be! Unacceptable!"
"Quiet!" Riveria smacked her Goddess over the head.
"So, it is a crush!"
"What am I crushing?"
"…"
Tione lets out a snort. "Of course."
"The white-haired boy, huh?" Finn took a sip of ale. "I'm guessing he's the same rabbit boy that Bete keeps yelling about?"
"Yup! He was the one who stole our prey. Did a pretty good job killing it even though it was weakened." Tione sighed and cuddled up to the pallum, much to his chagrin. "It's a shame that the magic stone was destroyed. I bet it would have fetched a good price."
"He had this giant red glowing sword that cut the monster like butter! Speaking of giant weapons, I miss mine. Brrr! I don't want to remember all the cost of having to pay for repairs and loans…"
Ais also made a face at that. She too has a hefty price to pay up to repair her sword.
"Well, sis. That's what you get for mindlessly taking out loans to buy a weapon you're going to break."
"It melted!"
"A red glowing sword? Is it a magic sword?" Finn inquired.
"Um… The sword of his. It looked like it was made of magic." Lefiya spoke up. "It disappeared after he used it. It's likely magic he has or a magic item."
"Ngh… Mrr… Smelled like death… The red glowing sword…" Bete mumbled out his subconscious thoughts.
"It did feel ominous," Riveria admitted.
Its very presence had invoked a primal fear of death – hinting that the white-haired boy wielded more power than shown on the surface.
"I'm guessing none of you know his name?" Asked Gareth.
"Nope! No thanks to this stupid mutt." Tiona nodded at the wasted Bete.
"He ran off after Bete was chewing him out for stealing our kill," Tione added. "Pretty fast too. Maybe rivaling Bete and Vana Freya in terms of speed."
"Sounds like the lad is capable. I'd say the boy is somewhere level 2 or 3 and has a skill that boosts his speed."
"… No. I think he's much stronger than level 2 or 3…"
Gareth stroked his beard and glanced over to Ais. "Oh? Looks like yer expectation for the lad is higher than mine."
"If he's over level 2, then he should have an alias. Unless his familia didn't provide any updates to the Guild." Which is illegal, by the way. "I'm guessing he doesn't bring to mind anyone noteworthy? What does he look like?"
"Red eyes. White hair. Around my height and age. He wore a black-silver armor and…"
As the blond girl begins listing off his noticeable features to Finn, the Hiryute twins gave each other a knowing look filled with mischief. On the other spectrum, Lefiya had a jealous look in her eyes while Loki's mood plummeted.
"Waaaah! My Ais-Ais is interested in some boy from another familia!"
Ais tilted her head in confusion. "Is that a problem?"
"Not as Loki is envisioning. It depends on your reasoning for seeking him." Riveria answered and shot the twins a warning look. "Why are you invested in this?"
"Invested?"
"She's asking why you're interested in him." Said Tiona.
"Why am I interested?"
Why is she interested in him? Is it because of his strength? She doesn't truly know if he's stronger than her or her peers. Is it because he reminded her of her father? Even if she's an airhead, that's an embarrassing thing to say out loud. There really isn't any reason to seek him out. He did help her when she was blown back by the monster's powerful roar. If that's the case, then she only wanted to thank him for helping her during her moment of weakness. Or is there more to it?
"Her brain is working hard."
"That's rude! Ais is smart!" Lefiya defended her friend. Her stance faltered when everyone gave her a look of doubt. It was no secret in Loki Familia that Ais is a bit of an airhead. "W-well… There are moments where she's…"
There's really no way around Ais' airhead.
"I wanted to thank him. For helping me. When I lost my balance, he helped me before killing the minotaur."
Riveria nodded. "I see. That is reasonable."
"What? That's it?" Tiona said disappointingly.
"Moving back on topic, does he sound familiar to you? Loki." Asked Finn.
Loki ceased her dramatic sobbing and turned her head slightly to face the captain of her familia.
"'Fraid not. I don't keep track of everyone going through the Denatus and the times I missed it – someone like that could have slipped by my notice. Plus, the Guild would have posted all aliases on their board. If we find 'em on there. Besides, we don't have a real reason to pursue that child. It'll look bad on our end if he had good intentions… Augh. Our food has gotten cold! Come on, let's dig in!"
Standing not far from the tables where Loki Familia had reserved, a waitress of the Hostess of Fertility overheard their conversation. Her bluish-gray hair and eyes gleamed beneath the light as she served another patron their meal.
Syr Flova is no adventurer like her colleagues. She's merely a human girl who loves to meet new and interesting people and this white-haired boy sounds like he'll be a captivating fellow to meet.
A boy with white hair and red eyes… Someone who caught even the Sword Princess's attention. Quick footed too. Heh, heh. He does sound like a rabbit. I wonder if our paths will meet soon…
/-/
Bell stood in front of the mirror, shirtless. He did what Melina had asked him to do. That is, remove the Three Finger branding mark from him. He examined his torso for any more burn marks and tried to check his back for any more. His efforts were fruitless.
"Thy branding is no more," Ranni told him from her seat. An opened book in hand. "There is not a mark upon you."
"Oh. Thanks. Will you be alright by yourself here?"
"Thou need not worry. Tis the least I can do, watching over the God and his lone follower."
Miach and Naaza had stayed up late to study the Crimson and Cerulean Tears he had provided them. They allegedly had some minor breakthroughs in understanding the substances, but that didn't address their fatigue. Because of this, Ranni decided to return their favor and watch over them and the pharmacy for the day. Blue Pharmacy doesn't have many customers, so the Goddess is using her time to conduct her own research on a variety of things.
"Then I'll be heading out now. Please let me know if you need anything."
Bell put on his Noble's Traveling Garb over his body and fastened the crimson hooded cloak around his neck. His belt held his flasks and a sheath held the Glintstone Kris.
Ranni nodded. "I bid thee a safe journey."
"Mhm! I'm off!"
The first thing that stood out to Bell was how warm and stuffy the air is. It didn't bother him a single bit. If anything, it made the city even livelier. People of all races milled around the stone floor, going about their daily lives. The streetways were bustling and stall vendors had merchants shouting their goods and promoting their business. The Lands Between had sparsely few people going about due to the constant danger and chaos.
It's jarring, really.
After getting used to the isolation and infrequent social interactions, Bell felt slightly nervous around crowds. The saving graces that prevented him from sticking to the edge and shadows are that the people are unarmed and displayed no hostility.
There's bound to be a library around here, maybe go to the Guild to learn more about the city and beyond? Bell didn't have much of a plan to go by. It's more of an aimless stroll. An exploration of the city without impending dangers creeping toward him. At least, he hopes so. There are so many restaurants and clothing shops here. Is there a magic or weapon store nearby as well?
Bell suddenly felt a distinct gaze on him. His body tensed a bit and he scanned around to find its source. It didn't feel malicious, only curious. Regardless, he shouldn't let his guard down. The area he was walking through was wide open and didn't have many people walking around, narrowing down his search. His eyes sharply fell on a cute bluish gray-haired girl sweeping the front entrance. Their eyes met. Red against bluish-gray.
The girl was startled by this and tripped on the stairs in her misstep.
"Wah!"
Bell acted quickly and caught the girl before she could tip over. At that exact moment, another figure in green and white moved in and Bell instinctively reacted by catching the person's hand with his right.
He then found himself in a peculiar position.
The bluish-gray haired girl was clinging to his chest while he and a green-haired elven young woman had their hands intertwined. The three of them took a second to register their situation before Bell immediately released the elf's hand.
"Ah, sorry. I acted on reflex."
The elf neutrally eyed her hand, then to Bell. Her expression was very hard to read and looked to be a perpetual frowner. Both girls were wearing the same uniform, which meant they are from the same establishment. A restaurant to be exact.
"Do not worry about it. I should apologize if I startled you." She turned her attention to her colleague. "Are you alright, Syr?"
"Y-yeah. I'm fine." Stuttered the human girl, Syr.
Her face had turned a bit rosy at the cheek, prompting Bell to place a hand on her forehead.
"Are you sure? Your forehead is heating up. Do you have a fever?"
"I'm fine! Thank you." Syr removed herself from his hold. Despite her shy and meek demeanor around him, she was able to strike up a conversation. "Ahem. My name is Syr, and this is my friend, Ryuu. Thank you for catching me."
"I'm glad you're not hurt. My name is Bell. Nice to meet you."
There's something off about the human girl named Syr. She's definitely not normal and the gaze that he felt earlier was from her. It doesn't feel like she means him any harm, but one can never really know one's true intention as he had experienced firsthand. He should be wary until he knows her a bit more.
"Bell, huh?" The girl's shyness melted away and she inspected him from head to down. "Humm… Red eyes and white hair. You're the rabbit that Loki Familia kept referencing last night!"
"Eh? Rabbit?"
Why do people keep calling him a rabbit? Even in the Lands Between, there was a handful who called him a rabbit. He looks nothing like one.
"Heeeh~ The Vanargand couldn't stop rambling about you. He was very mad for some reason."
Bell has a sinking feeling about who Vanargand is. The image of a silver-haired young man with wolf ears and a tail comes to his mind.
"Ah… Ahahah…"
"What did you even do to make him angry?"
"Please do not pry into other's personal matters," Ryuu said disapprovingly. "That is insensitive of you."
"Sorry, sorry. That was rude of me. Anyway, I don't think you'll have to worry about it. Loki Familia didn't seem to mind it. The Vanargand has always been like that."
"That's good…"
"Hey! You two girls! Quit slacking off out there!" Yelled a woman inside the shop.
"We're helping someone, Mama Mia!" Syr shouted back. "Ryuu. I'll be okay. Please take the broom and head back inside before Mama gets cranky." Ryuu nodded and left Syr alone with Bell. "Say. Why don't you come back here tonight for dinner as a thank you for preventing my fall?"
"Oh, you don't need to do that. It was nothing and I don't wish to impose."
Bell had long noted that he no longer felt hunger or thirst when he was a Tarnished, even to this day. The only food he had in the Lands Between was more like medical remedies and aren't exactly tasty. His biological functions had been permanently altered in some shape or form and he no longer needed proper food or drinks to sustain himself. He's not even sure if Ranni and Melina are capable of eating at all should he take up Syr's offer.
"But I insist. It weighs oh so heavily on my heart that I am unable to repay my benefactor with a simple meal." She didn't even bother to hide her ulterior motives, further making Bell cautious of her intentions.
"Not to be rude, but what do you want with me?"
"I just want to get to know my savior a little more~"
"Aren't you overexaggerating this?"
"Nope~ Please, dear savior of mine?"
How does he get himself out of this? This is the first time he has to deal with someone this passive-aggressive besides White Mask Varre and that eventually ended in a fight to the death. At least Varre made his intentions bloody clear.
It's hard to believe that things were much simpler…
"Oh no. My heart has grown even heavier. I might just faint from the guilt of not being able to repay my savior. What a cruel, cruel world." She feigned her swooning, placing a hand over her forehead and swaying on the stairs.
"Well, if you insist…" It's unlikely he'll draw up plans for tonight anyway. In fact, this might be a good opportunity to learn more about Orario and its surrounding lands. Maybe he could even find something related to his past.
"Wonderful! I'll see you tonight, Bell!"
"Yeah. You too. See you tonight."
"Stay safe and have a good day. Fufufu~"
He absentmindedly waved Syr goodbye and watched her happily skip into the store. In all honesty, it felt like he fell into a trap – one that was built haphazardly, and yet he still fell for it.
/-/
She can hardly believe such a soul as Bell's existed!
His soul… So bright and clear! It blazed within him and held in place great power and authority – runes of an unknown language, melded together into rings that dictated foreign laws over mortals and lesser beings. Bell is no mortal or a God. He is something that borderlines divinity! How or why? It matters not to her.
Just his pure soul alone was enough to make her heart beat intensely. But that is not all. She could feel it deeply within her.
She has finally found what she had been looking for. Her love. Her desires.
Her Odr.
/-/
Back at Blue Pharmacy, Ranni could already feel her consort getting entangled with some woman at this very instance.
"… Once again, I need not to even perceive his whereabouts to know he hath gotten himself involved with a troublesome dame."
"You too, huh?" Naaza gave her a look of empathy. "I'll assume that he's also unaware of your feelings for him?"
Ranni and Naaza had gotten to know one another. Even though Naaza was initially put off by Ranni's unusual appearance, she quickly got over it the more they interacted. They even shared a few common grounds such as having to keep watch over two kind-hearted individuals that have the tendency to attract women and are often clueless to the boot.
"Consort of mine he may be, its meaning was not explained properly to him. An oversight that is my fault."
In her defense, she had much more pressing matters to attend to. Executing her own schemes while foiling others; surviving assassination attempts; purging her small inner circle of traitors; the list goes on. The one time he did remotely ask about it, her hasty answer made him assume it was some sort of title for a closed companion, a personal bodyguard, or a servant.
"Consort? You mean you two are married?!" Naaza gasped and briefly daydreamed of her and Miach getting married. It then dawned on her that the underlying issues of Miach's naïve kind-heartedness, cluelessness, and unintentional womanizer would ultimately remain.
"I can see it in thy eyes. What plagued me shall also plague thee, though mine was self-inflicted." Ranni quipped in mild amusement.
"Why not tell him?"
"As circumstances would hath it, his destined future hath been denied due to my influence. I'd wish not to shackle him any further. Less so, this body of mine is unable to conceive any heirs. What his path now holds is his to walk. I ask thee not to reveal this to him." In short, she feels culpable for holding onto an innocent boy who had suffered in the turmoil. The fact that he was unaware of his position as consort further cement this.
If circumstances were different, she wouldn't mind starting a family with Bell if she could. Alas, Ranni has sacrificed her real body to unshackle herself from fate. She's but a soul residing inside a doll. A price she must pay for the fulfillment of her goals and desires she had put forth. There's nothing on that part she'd regret.
"I understand. Gods and Goddesses cannot have children with mortals, after all." Naaza nodded and sighed longingly.
Ranni mentally archived that particular information while keeping to herself the fact that Bell is not a mortal and is very much capable of producing Demigods with the divines.
"Are thou able to remain awake through the long day? Taxing, it can be on thy body and mind."
"Thank you for your concern, Lady Ranni. But the fatigue medicine I took works wonders. It's not a good replacement for sleep, but I'll get sleep well tonight once it wears off. That reminds me, what sort of Goddess are you? You introduced yourself as the Witch and even dressed like one. Are you the Goddess of Magic? You can do a lot of amazing things that I have never seen other Gods or Goddesses do before."
"I see. You ask what aspect I represent. It is true that my proficiency in sorcery is noteworthy. Howbeit, I am also tied to the moon and stars to an extent."
"Then does that mean you plan on opening a magic shop soon with your husband? There aren't that many familia who run stores selling magic-related items and services even in Orario."
Opening a magic shop; is an intriguing prospect. Back in the Academy of Raya Lucaria, Ranni delved into research of sorceries and mysteries of the unknown. She gleaned much knowledge from the moon and even created her very own sorcery. Since they'll be here for a while and they blend in with the locals, it wouldn't hurt to engage in some form of financial venture. They are lacking this world's currency and it wouldn't do to freeload.
Her dear consort is also well versed in not just sorceries, but incantations too – a vast collection he has amassed during his journey. There's plenty to choose from. That said, she's well aware that the magic of this world is far different from theirs. Research must be conducted before making any considerations.
"Perhaps I shall explore this undertaking thou hath proposed. My knowledge of this world is scarce. Would thou care to enlighten me?"
"I'm not a magic expert, but I will try my best to answer what I know."
Ranni nodded and produced a magic stone she got from Bell.
"Can thou explain to me about these magic stones? Their uses and such?"
Addressing some of my directions in the story:
Why make Bell be unaware of what a consort is? Why not make Ranni straight up tell him?
I'd like to free up some of Bell's "obligations" and it's not a complete stretch that a 14 year old boy with a few memory loss will know what a consort is. As for Ranni, she has her own guilt complex regarding Bell (plus she was busy). I don't feel that it'll really impact the story, at least in my disorganized storyboard.
Bell's emotional and mental maturity (and pureness)
If it's one thing I see in Bell is his firm conviction in the things he believes in it. His very person was described as pure and it's impressive that he managed to retain it (kinda scary when he's got a very high kill count). You'll see some moments where his maturity shine through such as in combat or immense stress. Outside of that, Bell didn't get a decent chance to improve. It's hard when you're in constant danger by the horrors and murderous Tarnished in the Lands Between.
It bothered me slightly that other fanfictions drastically alter Bell's personality (and there's nothing wrong with altering a character's personality. It's FANFICTION!). I won't deny that there are justifications for personality changes here and there. I'm going about it at a different way and hope you'll get a chance to see it (unless I get writer's block).
The Dungeon being set up to be able to summon invaders
Much like how the Dungeon will summon powerful monsters if it detected a God/Goddess, the Dungeon has a special condition case for Bell when he exerts his true abilities (Plus, invaders don't aggro hostiles just like in-game). How it is capable of doing that is a mystery. Keep in mind that the Dungeon responds in equal power acting against or within it.
Ultimately, it's a factor to make Bell limit and reconsider his actions. Suffer dragon breath and sorcery spamming, rivers of blood letting, and other weirdos.
Well... No fanfic is perfect.
