Chapter 7: Burning Courage
"This…this will be our home from now on?" Bell asked.
It was the morning after the disastrous Monsterphilia. Waking up early, Hestia and her Familia plus Lily arrived at the building designated by the Guild. It was a large cottage with four floors and a steel fence surrounding it. It wasn't designed with defending against a siege in mind but more for a middle rank Familia to live comfortably. It contained ten bedrooms and two large office areas spread across the second, third and fourth floors and one large communal bath on the first floor and a large kitchen connected to a dining area. There was also a small yard between the fence and the building proper. As a special feature several of the rooms were connected by a series of speaking tubes in order to quickly communicate and send announcements throughout the house.
"So they say," Caster said, looking away from the description on the side of the building. "Goddess Hestia and I will claim the rooms closest to the offices. The three of you can take decide on the rest."
"I get my own office…" Hestia said happily with stars in her eyes.
"So you're the ones who made the order?" A elderly voice called out.
An old man with a thin yet muscular body came out from inside the house.
"Oh, Goibniu!" Hestia called out. "Thanks for the hard work."
"It really is Hestia…" the old God said with disbelief. "Last I heard you were living in an abandoned basement. To think you'd be moving up in the world so quickly."
"Huhu! It's because my boys are amazing!" Hestia bragged, throwing her chest out as Bell bowed toward the Smith God.
"Well, they're rich at least," Goibniu muttered. "Everything should be as you requested. If you need something tweaked or changed, let me know and we'll redo it."
"Your fast work is appreciated, God Goibniu," Caster said. "Has the guild finalized the payment?"
"Indeed. Every last Valis was transferred last night, just as we finished. Between you and me, you're much better customers than a certain stupid Amazon."
"…Would you happen to be talking about Tiona Hiryute?" Archer asked.
"That's right," Goibniu sighed. "She's always making my smiths cry from breaking that weapon of hers and always tries to put it on her tab. All one hundred twenty million Valis. Then again, an Adventurer isn't doing their job properly if they don't make their smiths cry."
Bell and Lily let out a strangled cough at the absurd amount as the old god left, having confirmed that the job was done.
"So I'm worth that much to her, huh?" Archer mumbled wryly before leading the two kids inside.
Once inside, the five of them spent time exploring the new home, checking things like whether or not the lights would turn on or if any of the wooden boards would break without warning.
"It looks like all the rooms aside from the rooms with a connected office are the same size with the same furnishings," Archer noted when they reconvened in the dining area with him behind the kitchen counter preparing a meal. "So who is getting which office?"
"Caster, you take the bigger office," Hestia said immediately to Caster's slight surprise. "I don't really have anything to work on since I'll probably end up leaving most things to you anyway. I'll take the smaller one and turn it into a library or something."
"…Very well," Caster nodded. "I shall put it to good use."
"Thank you, my obstinate child~"
"…Do not call me that again."
Hestia simply giggled as Caster turned his head away.
"By the way, Caster," Bell spoke up. "Since we got a new place, do you think I can try calling another one? Another Servant?"
Caster raised a brow at Bell speaking about it so openly as he turned toward Lily who met his eyes once before glancing to the side.
"I see, so you told her, huh?" Caster said with a sigh. "Well no matter. However my answer shall be 'no.'"
"No good, huh?" Bell asked with a sigh.
"Naive," he said. "Even though your Magic Status is growing far faster than your other Status, it is still too early to consider it. Not only do you use your magic to anchor us to this world, you use it to fuel our prowess in battle. It is the second reason why I have had you fight alone most of the time with little assistance. If an enemy that was strong enough to force Archer into a serious fight, your body will become a corpse in a second if you had to sustain three Servants at once. Do not ask me again until you Level Up, mongrel."
"Yes!" Bell nodded, looking determined rather than let down at the refusal.
"Another Spirit huh…" Lily said. "Lily wonders what they will be like."
"I just hope they agree to join the Familia…" Hestia muttered. "I don't know what I'd do if another one like Caster shows up."
"I'm sitting right here you Goddess-in-debt," Caster growled causing Hestia to freeze up a bit.
"Goddess-in-debt?" Bell repeated.
"Just how many of my treasures do you think I had to trade in for that knife of yours mongrel?" Caster said irritably as Hestia crawled on her hands and knees toward Caster begging for his forgiveness. "As such this useless goddess will be working until she pays it back."
"…How much was it?" Archer asked, slightly fearing the answer.
"…valis…." Hestia spoke in a voice that couldn't even be called a whisper.
Although Bell couldn't hear it, Lily, with her heightened hearing thanks to her magical disguise, and Archer, who was a Servant, froze.
Bell, feeling extremely worried since the number was enough to make even Archer freeze, decided to ask again.
"Goddess?" He began, face turning blue as sweat started pouring out from his hands and the knife he was carrying suddenly felt immensely heavy. "How much was it?"
"…Two hundred Million…"
"Ah…aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh…." Bell let out a pathetic sounding scream like a dying dog before collapsing backward in his seat, falling to the floor.
"As always…just an immature brat," Caster huffed. "Well, it's not a loan I expect to see repaid for a few generations anyway. My investment has already begun to show its return anyway."
"I'll pay you back…" Hestia cried as she clung to Caster's leg. "I promise. Just don't bully Bell too much."
Caster simply shook the goddess off as she fell pathetically to the floor.
"Arde," he said and Lily snapped back to attention. "I will now tell you the plan to release you from Soma Familia."
"Y-yes…" Lily nodded with a gulp.
Then, without warning, several large bags of Valis landed in front of her.
"Lord Caster…this is…" Lily said, her body shaking at the sight in front of her.
"Ten million Valis," Caster said leaning back slightly and yet it made his voice sound so far away from Lily. "This is my investment in you. You will take it and deliver it to your god directly and ask to leave the Familia. If he refuses, ask for a drink of Soma. The true Soma. Not one of those failures. Once you drink it, steel your mind, keep your soul and ask…nay…demand once again to leave the Familia. If you fail this, it is likely we will never meet again."
Caster stood up from the table and walked around to where Lily was sitting, still petrified, and leaned in close to whisper into her ear.
"Do not disappoint me, Liliruca Arde."
"One moment he's giving you an inspirational talk and the next day he's throwing you to your doom," Archer said with a wry smile as he continued cooking. "Such is the fate of one who is an interest to the Wise King of Heroes."
"Master Archer…please save Lily…" she begged but Archer could only give her a sad face.
"Sorry, but it is out of my hands."
"Archer," Caster said, looking rather annoyed at being talked about as if he wasn't there again. "You are to go with her. Make sure she and the money reach the God properly. If something goes wrong…"
Archer and Lily stared as Caster gave the order and Lily couldn't help but feel the dread creep up on her back.
X-x-X-x-X
After lunch, Bell still hadn't woken up from his fainting spell so Archer and Lily left first. As Lily was still wearing Caster's ring, they had to move carefully as to not bump into anyone and leave them confused.
"Will Lily be okay, she wonders…" Lily mumbled as Archer placed a hand on her head.
"Don't worry, you'll be fine," Archer said. "You drank both the King's wine and that failed Soma wine with no problems. There's no way you'll lose to the real thing."
"Lily feels that if she fails she will not live to regret it after drinking Lord Caster's wine as well…" she admitted.
"If you think you'll fail then you've already lost," Archer said thumping her on the head. "Is this the place?"
"Yes…" Lily nodded as her face changed from one of fear and dread to pure loathing and disgust. "Lily feels like she would rather spit on Lord Caster's shoes then step in here again."
"Death would be better huh?" Archer sighed. "I'll be keeping watch from outside. If anything happens, I'll know right away and enact Plan B."
"Yes."
"Be careful, okay?"
"Yes…" Lily nodded again before grabbing Archer's hand before he could leave. "Master Archer…Lily…Lily has a request."
Archer listened to Lily's words before staring at the girl in shock.
"You…"
"Lily apologizes to have asked this from Master Archer…" Lily said, lowering her head. "But Lily doesn't want to show Lily's disgrace to Master Bell or Lord Caster…so please…don't let Lily be seen by them…"
And with that, Archer leaped up to the rooftops, leaving Lily alone on the street before she walked in through the doors.
Archer then moved from his position, jumping from roof to roof and getting a good idea of all the windows and entrances to the Familia Home as well as the line of sight of the watch towers…not that he had needed to. When he checked the closest one, he found a Soma Familia member who had passed out drunk lying on the ground. Nonetheless, he was able to watch Lily make it up to Soma's room unchallenged where she took off the ring and opened the door inside.
Turning his head, Archer looked at a mirror he had set up on a rooftop that gave him a clear view of the room through the open window and spotted Soma, a rather tired looking god with long and unkempt hair. Lily knelt down behind the god that was more focused on the wine in front of him than he was of her.
He watched her lower her head to offer the money and beg to be released from the Familia. But Soma didn't seem to care. From what Archer could tell from his lip movement, he had no ears for those that succumbed to his wine.
"I see…" Archer thought as he glanced back at the unconscious guard behind him.. "He's not apathetic, not really. He's just full of disappointment. Disappointment at his children for failing to rise up and surpass. Then before Lily could say anything else, Soma took a bottle off a shelf and poured it into a glass and held it out to Lily.
Whether Caster predicted it or not, Soma took the initiative himself.
His face broke into a bitter expression as Lily's request echoed in his mind.
"If…If Lily loses herself to the Soma Wine…please…please…"
"Please save Lily…"
…
"Please kill Lily."
"…Stay strong…Liliruca Arde…" Archer said as he nocked the sword into his bow and pulled back on the string.
X-x-X-x-X
Lily felt the same fear that crept up on her when Caster showed her the failed Soma Wine return as she picked up the glass with shaking hands.
This was it…she had to win. She had to beat the wine.
If she didn't…one way or the other…her life was over.
It was strange. She couldn't believe how her view of everything changed over the last few days. There were so many moments where she just wanted everything to end…just so she could be released from the hell she lived in. Now…she wanted to live. She wanted to walk alongside that smile gave her hope in heroes. She wanted to receive praise from the hand that stood by her side. She wanted to prove that she was worthy to follow that golden light into the future. No…not to the light, not to the smile, not to the hand…but to herself. She wanted to prove to herself that she wanted to live on.
And so…she drank the accursed wine.
X-x-X-x-X
Archer's breath hitched as he saw Lily writhe as if lightning was coursing through her body before a strange smile appeared on her face…and her tiny body fell over.
"I'm sorry…" Archer said as he pulled back the string of his bow.
But before he released the arrow, his eyes spotted the tiny body shake a bit before it slowly pushed itself upright, tears streaming from her eyes as her lips moved.
"Please…let Lily leave the Familia…"
The god was frozen in place. He had turned away from Lily's body in apparent resignation and disappointment before turning halfway back around when Lily pushed herself back up. At Lily's request, the god moved toward her and helped her sit up right before pulling her shirt up to reveal her back. Then….with slow movements that spoke volumes of hesitation and lack of practice, the god traced his blood on Lily's back for a few minutes before pulling her shirt down and staring out the window…right into the mirror Archer had set up and into Archer's eyes themselves.
Now exposed, Archer dismissed his weapons and hopped down from the watch tower and made his way to the window of Soma's room and slipped inside in a low crouch.
"My apologies for the rudeness…" he said to the god.
"No need," Soma said as he gestured to Lily who still seemed a bit out of it. "I leave her to you."
"…Thank you, Lord Soma," Archer said as he walked over and picked Lily up in his arms.
"Master Archer?" Lily croaked out. "Is that you?"
"Yeah," Archer answered her softly.
"Lily…Lily did it…"
"Yeah…you did. Good job."
As he headed to the door Lily suddenly stopped him as she turned her head to her former God.
"Lord Soma…?" She spoke up. "Thank you…for everything."
There was no irony or resentment in her voice. She probably just wanted to end things on a peaceful note. As it was, her Status had no symbol now meaning she was just an normal person without a god to follow.
"…I have done you wrong, Liliruca Arde," Soma said. "Take care of your health."
Lily's sleepy looking eyes opened wide as if those words had caused her to sober up immediately. In her current state, she was unable to do anything more than nod her head before Archer opened the door and left the room.
"Master Archer?" Lily began, tugging a bit on his mantle.
"Yeah?"
"Lily…Lily wants to go home now."
"Yeah…let's go home."
X-x-X-x-X
Bell had woken up long after Archer and Lily had gone to the Soma Familia and Caster had told him to get out of the house to get his head on straight.
"You need to get a solid hold on your emotions!" Caster had yelled at him. "What kind of Hero faints at the cost of his own weapon? Go cool your head!"
"Aha…I made him mad again…" Bell said with a sigh. "I suppose me passing out over that must seem pathetic when he has weapons that probably cost just as much if not more in his vault."
Bell knew he was rather immature. He could barely touch his Goddess or Lily without feeling extremely embarrassed. In the eyes of Caster, it must have been infuriating.
It couldn't be helped though. He was raised only by his grandfather and before coming to Orario, he wasn't really close to any girls in his life.
"And to think I wanted to have a harem like Grandpa said…ahaha…" he let out a laugh as he remembered his childish goal. Well, it's not like wanting to become a hero isn't also childish. "Caster is right. I need to hurry up and grow up if I want to be a proper hero. Though…I don't think any girls are going to be asking me to save them any time soon."
No sooner did he say that did someone come running up to him.
"Bell!" Syr, the waitress from the Hostess of Fertility came running up to him. "Please, help me!"
"Yes?"
The next thing Bell knew, he was in the back of the pub washing dishes.
"Umm…is this what you meant?" Bell asked Syr beside him.
"I'm sorry," the waitress said with a smile. "But we're really busy today so any extra hands would help a lot."
Bell nodded as he turned to look at the front where people had taken up all the seats and the other waitresses were running around ragged. Back in the kitchen, both the owner, Mia Grand and the cook were running dishes back and forth from the stove to the counter.
"Well, I suppose I am happy to help," Bell said. "Too bad Archer had something else to do. He cooks our Familia's meals and they're always pretty good. He might have been able to help."
"Speaking of that," Syr began. "Mama Mia's been wanting to talk to him. Can you pass on the message for her?"
"Did…did he do something wrong?" Bell asked, feeling worried as he glanced over at the woman who was most likely a former Adventurer.
"Oh no, not at all," Syr quickly assured him. "She wanted to offer him a temp job helping out whenever he's available."
"Like what I'm doing now?"
"Hee hee…kinda."
Time passed as Bell continued being a chore boy for the pub and the lunch rush finally ended with only a few customers trickling in.
"It's over!" Bell said as he thumped his head against the counter.
"Thanks fer ya help," Mia Grand said as she placed a large plate of pasta in front of him. "On the house."
"Thanks!" Bell accepted the meal gratefully, having helped them through lunch. "So…you wanted to talk to my Familia member?"
"That young man figured out the recipe from just a single bowl…" Mia said, looking both impressed and frustrated. "Got a good tongue in that head of his. You let him know if he ever gets tired of Dungeon diving, he's welcome to work here."
"Knowing him, he might try to come help out after coming back from a dungeon," Bell said and Mia let out a laugh before returning to the kitchen.
"Thank you for your help again, Bell," Syr said as she came up to him. "You really saved us."
"Well, getting a free lunch is enough of a thanks," Bell replied.
"Come to think of it…were you not going to the dungeon today?" Syr asked. "I thought Adventurers spent all day every day in the dungeon."
"Well, like I said, Archer and our Supporter all had some personal things to take care of and we just moved into a bigger house. Though I got kicked out for a bit since I made our captain mad."
"Oh dear, what happened?"
"…I learned how much money my Goddess spent on a single purchase…" Bell replied, shaking from the mere memory of the price of his precious new dagger. "…so expensive…so many zeroes…"
Syr must have gotten a good idea of how absurd the price was since she placed a hand on her mouth and nodded.
"Well…if you don't have anything to do for the day, how about try reading?"
Bell slurped up the noodles that were trailing from his mouth before replying.
"Reading?" Bell repeated. "Well…my Goddess has some books but they're a bit high level for me. I think the Captain does too but…they're all about magic and stuff in a language I don't know."
And that they were all engraved on stone tablets but Syr didn't need to know that.
"Then, how about this one?" Syr said, picking up a large antique looking book on display. "A customer seemed to have left it behind the other day and hasn't come back to pick it up yet."
"Eh? Is it all right for me to read it if it belongs to someone else?"
"As long as you bring it back, there shouldn't be a problem. Books don't disappear after someone reads them. Plus, I think it belongs to an adventurer, so there might be something useful for you in here. Many adventurers come to this bar; more than likely the owner of this book is one, too."
She then turned back toward the kitchen where Mia was tossing something in a pan.
"And Mama Mia doesn't really want it in the store so you'd be doing us a favor too."
"I see…" Bell muttered. "Then I'll try reading it when I get home."
Syr gave him a smile before returning to work.
"Syr's got ya wrapped around her finger doesn't she, meow?" The black haired cat person waitress said as she slipped up behind Bell and started massaging his shoulders, causing him to choke a bit in surprise. "If you want to be spoiled so badly then let Chloe spoil you a bit too~"
"I…uh..huh?" Bell stammered only to be rescued by the elf waitress who came by and smacked the cat person on the head.
"I'm sorry about that Mr Cranel," the elf, Ryuu Lion, said as she pulled Chloe away. "Please enjoy your the rest of your meal."
"Noooo! I need a better look of that immature and shapely treasure hidden underneath the back of those trousers-GUFA!"
"Oh uh…thanks…" Bell said as he watched them leave before finishing his meal.
Once he was back home, he headed up to the top floor where Caster had set up his office to apologize.
"Irrelevant," the man said as he was sorting through some papers. "I suppose there is no point in trying to rush your maturation than it is trying to get the dungeon to stop spouting monsters. You shall be pleased to know that Arde has been freed from the Soma Familia."
"Really!?" Bell asked, happiness pouring out of his body. "All right! I'm so happy for her!"
"Indeed," Caster nodded and, although it was slight, Bell could see the ghost of a smile on his face as well. "She is currently resting until the effects of the Soma leave her body with Goddess Hestia watching over her and Archer is out procuring supplies for a celebration. As such, you have the rest of the day to do as you wish. Although the goddess would rather you not, I give you leave to enter the Dungeon as well, but for no further than the fifth floor. You are to be back home before the seventh bell."
"Oh no it's fine," Bell said. "I don't plan on going to the Dungeon today. A friend lent me a book and I wanna try reading it."
Caster looked rather surprise at Bell's words but nevertheless nodded his head.
"I see, to train your mind over your body today," he said with approval. "Very well. Enjoy yourself until the feast."
"Yes!"
With a nod and a bow, Bell bade goodbye to Caster and headed to one of the rooms on the second floor where he had dumped his meager belongings in to claim for his own.
"My own room…" He said as he looked around and sat at the desk provided by the Goibniu Familia as part of the renovation. He never had his own room before, always sleeping in one big one when he was still living with his grandfather and then the basement room he shared with Hestia and the Servants.
He looked around the rather spartan walls and wondered how he should start decorating. Having a small personal library sounded great. He'd fill it with books about legends and myths of heroes of the past. He wouldn't ask Caster for money to buy those books though. This was a personal thing so he'd work for it in the dungeon then buy a bookshelf and books to fill it in.
Feet pounding against the floorboards rapidly in excitement, he quickly opened the book and looked over the first page.
Mirror, Mirror: The Fairest Witch in the Land Is ME: An Autobiography (With Appendix: Awaken Your Magic!)
Right off the bat, it sounded childish…
Chapter 1: Modern Magic Even Goblins Can Understand!
Teaching magic to goblins. No one should do that…
Bell was starting to feel rather worried at the author's choice in titles but other than that the contents were more serious. The book began by explaining the two types of magic. Innate and Acquired. Innate magic was magic inherent to various races, ones that can be learned without a God's Grace and are trained from early age to master them while Acquired magic can awaken through the Falna and its effect depends on the excelia of the person holding it.
"Archer and Caster's magic must be innate then…" Bell reasoned. "And the Servant Summoning spell I have must be considered Acquired since I got it from taking the Holy Grail."
The Holy Grail. Currently it was kept in Hestia's care as being so close to a Goddess seemed to help ease the burden on Bell for keeping two Servants at once.
"I wanna hurry up and Level Up so I can meet more of them," Bell thought to himself as he turned the page and continued reading.
"Magic is interest. This is a vital factor for all acquired magic. What holds your interest—what do you accept, hate, want, grieve for, worship, swear to, long for? The trigger is already within you. Your Falna will carve your soul into a blazing sun."
A picture appeared in Bell's vision.
It's a head. It has eyes. It has a nose. It has a mouth. It has ears. It's a person's face. A human face with closed eyes is drawn out in black. A picture made from the words of the passage.
"If you desire it, answer. If you desire it, break. If you desire it, focus! A terrible mirror of truth lies before you."
It was Bell's face he realized…limited from his chin to his forehead and nothing else. Rather than a face, it was more of a mask. It's another face of Bell. A part of him that he didn't know.
Now, let's begin.
The eyes open. It speaks with the same voice as Bell.
The ruby-red letters that spell out the eyes shoot through Bell. Short passages that make up the small lips spin words.
What is magic to me?
Bell don't know but he did feel that it was something great and mysterious. Something like a finishing move to slay monsters and turn the tide around back to a hero's favor. A power that Bell wanted for himself, not to summon others to fight for him.
What is magic to me?
Magic was power. A power to defeat enemies. Not a shield for allies like Archer, but one to strike down the foe and remove it from Bell's way like Caster.
What kind of a thing is magic to me?
Thing? It was a vague question but to Bell magic was fire. It was something strong, ferocious and hot. Something that could torch the plains, scatter ash, ravage the air and drown everything in flame. An immortal flame that burns forever.
What do you seek in magic?
To become stronger, like him. To become faster, like him. Like light breaking through the clouds. Like lightning racing across the sky. More than anyone, more than anyone, more than anyone. Faster than anyone.
Like him.
He wanted to become a hero. Like a fool pursuing an impossible ideal. To be someone who reacts at the first sign of trouble and ends in decisively. To stand like a mountain before the enemy and the one that needed to be save. Even if it were to be a never ending dream he'd sped his whole life chasing…he felt that it would put him one step closer to his ideal. To be a hero that can stand beside the others…and to be a Master that wouldn't embarrass them.
You're such a child.
…Sorry.
But that's me, too.
The Bell inside the book smiles.
Then everything goes black.
X-x-X-x-X
Bell jerked awake when he felt someone shake his shoulder.
"Fall asleep while reading?" Archer asked as Bell looked up.
"Oh…uh…looks like it…" Bell yawned as he closed the book while rubbing his eyes.
"Didn't think I'd see you reading. What was it about?"
"I…think it was about the basics of magic but I don't really remember after falling asleep…haha…"
"Is that right?" Archer asked, looking interested. "Mind if I take a look later?"
"Go ahead…oh right! What about Lily?"
"She's fine. Lady Hestia has gone to wake her up for the celebration."
"I heard she drank the actual Soma…is she going to be okay?" Bell asked as the two of them headed downstairs.
"For the most part, yes," Archer nodded. "Though she might not be able to drink any wine anymore."
"Ah…I think I understand," Bell said. "It's because she drank something so good that everything else will be disappointing afterwards?"
"That's right. How would you feel if I stopped cooking and you had to go back to eating Lady Hestia's Jagamaru-kuns for every meal again."
"Aha…I wouldn't complain since they're really good even when cold but I might feel a bit sad."
"Well, lucky for you, Lady Hestia brought some back from her part-time job since she still has to work off the debt for your dagger."
"Ah…ahahaha…haha…please don't remind me."
The two of them entered the kitchen to see Caster already there, sitting at the head of the table with his arms crossed in a chair with golden decorations on it. The chair across from him on the other end of the table was draped with white and blue cloth with a flame emblazoned on it, marking it as Hestia's seat.
Compared to that, all the other chairs were uniform and relatively simple. The table has also already been set with a large pot of soup, a sandwich platter, a roasted bird…and of course, the aforementioned Jagamaru-kun potato puffs.
As Bell sat down on the side closest to the door, Archer moved around the table to stand next to the soup pot as the door opened up and Hestia came in, holding the shoulders of a rather nervous looking Lily.
"G-good evening…" she says, fidgeting a bit.
"Good evening, Arde," Caster said with a smirk. "How does it feel to be a free woman?"
"Lily feels like everything is one hazy dream…Lily isn't sure what she is supposed to do now…"
"Well, for starters," Bell said as he stood up and walked over to Lily. "How about something to eat? You hadn't had anything to eat since this morning right?"
Lily's response was for her stomach to growl as the girl blushed and clutched her stomach.
"Lily would like that."
With Lily sitting next to Bell, the party got under way. Archer dutifully served everyone a bowl of soup before sitting down himself as everyone enjoyed the small party for Lily.
"Umm…Lord Caster?" Lily spoke up as Archer was filling her third bowl of soup.
"What is it?" Caster asked, not opening his eyes as he swirled a glass of wine in front of him.
"Lily…would like to thank Lord Caster for everything he's done for Lily," Lily said as she lowered her head. "Lily thinks that because she drank some of Lord Caster's wine that Lily wasn't lost to the Soma."
"Huh?" Caster suddenly made a rather annoyed and incredulous face as he shouted, "Fool! Did you really think I'd let someone drink my wine so easily?"
"Eh?"
"What you drank was not my finest wine but just some juice found in a marketplace! Do not be so ready to believe every little thing!"
Lily blushed as she her body sank down a bit under the table.
"You triumphed over the Soma wine with nothing more than your own will!" Caster said before sitting back in his chair as Lily looked up at him in surprise. "Do not confuse humility with self-depreciation. Do not attribute your success to your tools. Claim your own achievements as what they are."
"Y-yes!" Lily nodded as she straightened up in her chair. "Thank you very much!"
"Humph…then continue enjoying the celebration. You are the guest of honor after all."
"Yes!"
"'Juice' from a marketplace that was good enough for you to place into your treasury," Archer muttered as Caster smirked in his direction.
"So Lily," Hestia began as she wolfed down her fifth Jagamaru-kun. "Have you thought about what you wanted to do after this? As Caster said you're welcome to stay here as long as you need to figure things out."
"Yes, Lily has a plan…umm…" she began, fidgeting with her hands for a bit. "Lily…if possible…would like to join the Hestia Familia…maybe?"
"Of course you can!" Hestia and Bell shouted at the same time.
"Why are you acting all shy?" Archer asked as he walked around the table and placed a hand on Lily's head. "You're practically one of us already."
"Come come, I'll give you my grace right away!" Hestia said as she jumped out of her seat. "Boys turn around!"
Archer turned on the spot without missing a beat while Bell stammered, red in the face for a moment before quickly turning around and covering both eyes with his hands for good measure. Caster simply rolled his eyes before obeying.
"Although it'll mostly just you and Bell down there, I can rest easy knowing someone else is with him," Hestia said as she pricked her finger and started drawing on Lily's back.
"Yes! Lily will do her best!"
"Now let's see…" Hestia began. "This is the first time I'm doing this for someone who had the grace before hand so it might be a bit slow. Aha! There we go!"
Hestia nodded as she examined Lily's back.
"Uh…hey…wait a minute…when did you get your status last updated?" Hestia asked.
"Umm…half a year ago?" Lily admitted.
"Jeez, what is that Soma doing?" The goddess sighed as she traced Lily's back a bit more. "Okay…Status updated now the rest…oh, so this is your magic is it? Cinder Ella?"
"Yes. It has saved Lily's life a lot of times."
"So I gathered. Then there's the skill Alter Assist…is this how you carry that massive bag of yours? I did hear Hephaistos say that Supporters tend to get this skill and…huh?"
"S-something the matter, Goddess?" Bell asked, not turning around.
"A second skill…what is this thing?"
"Huh?" Lily turned her head around in surprise. "What is it? Let Lily see!"
"All right, all right, give me a second," Hestia said as she placed some parchment on Lily's back and peeled it off.
Liliruca Arde
Level 1
Strength: I42 - I70
Defense: I42 - H101
Dexterity: H143 - H192
Agility: G285 - F321
Magic: F317 - E427
Magic:
Cinder Ella: Shape-shifting magic. Target will take the envisioned shape at the time of the spell magic will Fail without a clear image. Imitation is recommended.
Trigger: Your scars are mine. My scars are mine
Release: Stroke of Midnight's Bell
Skills
Artel Assist: Activates when carried weight exceeds a certain level. Amount of assistance is proportional to weight carried.
King's Follower: Crownsguard: Parameters increase when acting on orders from a leader. Strength and Dexterity increases when defending a leader.
"Hah hah hah hah hah hah!" Caster let out a laugh as Lily stared at the skill sheet in her shaking hands. "You really are a shrewd one, Arde."
"L-Lily is sorry for being so presumptuous…" Lily said, still staring at the page with rather empty eyes.
"Not at all. Your devotion is splendid, Arde. But it is an arduous and thorny path for the King is a fickle one. But do not abandon it and I shall not abandon you."
Lily glanced up from her sheet and looked Caster in the eye with a smile.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" She said with a bow.
"While we're at it, let's update everyone else's stats," Hestia said, walking over to Caster. "Caster, you first."
"It is unlikely anything has changed," Caster said but he turned around nonetheless. "It is difficult to build upon perfection."
"Yeah yeah," Hestia said dismissively as she traced his back. "Well, you're right. Nothing."
Caster simply scoffed as he put his vest back on while Hestia trotted over to Archer.
"Whoa! You gained a whole five points Archer!" Hestia said, staring at the man's chiseled back. "Two in magic, two in agility and one in dexterity… those plant monsters you were talking about must have been really scary."
"They were giving three Level 5s trouble," Archer said as he threw his armored undershirt back on. "I'm rather surprise I didn't get more though. Then again, I only supported them from behind."
"Well, at least we know that you can still get points," Hestia said, patting Archer's arm. "You probably have to reach the Middle or Lower floors first though. But that won't happen for a long while…"
Archer shrugged as Hestia finally reached Bell.
"I know I just updated you yesterday but since your magic status is always growing let's just do it anyway so you aren't left out," she said.
"Understood Goddess," Bell nodded as he removed his shirt.
"Hmm…like I thought," Hestia hummed. "You're still growing at a stupidly fast pace but since you didn't do much since the last update since defeating that Silverback, it isn't as insane as before. Well…aside from the Magic status as usual but-"
Hestia suddenly froze before gripping Bell's sides and thrust her face at his Status as if she couldn't believe her eyes.
"M-magic?" Hestia gasped.
"Heh? Well…I mean, the Summon Servant spell is still there, right?" Bell asked.
"No! I mean…another magic spell appeared!" Hestia shouted, causing them all to stare at Bell.
"Eh!?"
Hestia quickly slapped another parchment onto Bell's back and pulled it off. After checking to make sure there were no problems, Hestia placed the sheet on the table next to Bell's plate. There, underneath Bell's status was indeed a new magic spell.
"Firebolt?" Archer read. "But there's no incantation? It just says Swift-Strike Magic…"
"I'm telling you right now, I didn't forget to write it down okay!" Hestia said, looking at Archer who quickly held his hands up in surrender. "It's just a guess right now but I think it's a spell without an incantation. It might activate when Bell says 'Firebolt' though. But since it has no incantation I have no idea how powerful it can be."
As a general rule, the longer an incantation was for magic, the more powerful it was. Of course, it was not a hard rule as there were those with Skills and the skill to channel their magic and recite their incantations faster than others.
"Powerful spells do not need a long incantation to be powerful," Caster commented. "I have heard of a few Heroes that can compress the incantation of powerful spells into a single word…though I suppose that the circumstances are different compared to this one."
"Really now…" Hestia sighed as Bell was jumping around with joy. "Lily and Bell are growing rather well but you two are stuck where you are. Is this what they mean by peak of the mountain?"
"I don't think that's the right phrase," Archer muttered.
"A plateau then?"
"That sounds more accurate but…"
"In any case, you should try it out in the dungeon tomorrow," Hestia said to Bell before turning to Lily. "And you should try to see how that Crownsguard skill works."
"Indeed," Caster nodded. "We must find out what orders affect your skill and if there is a range to it. The second part is self-explanatory but the first part is still vague."
"Yes!" Lily nodded.
"For the time being, let's at least finish dinner before lest it goes to waste," Archer said as everyone sat back down. "I guess we should plan how far we're going down then?"
"Attack Magic of this era…" Caster said as he supported his chin with his arm. "I suppose I shall come along to witness this as well. Before heading to the Dungeon, be sure to stock up on Mind Potions."
"Yes!" Bell nodded. "I'll visit the Blue Pharmacy first thing tomorrow morning."
"The main objective will be to test Arde's new skill and Cranel's new magic," Caster said. "Therefore we shall only move to the Fifth Floor first. Depending on the situation then, we will either return for the day or advance to the tenth floor."
"Ohh…Your Majesty is being ambitious!" Lily said with a smile before looking unsure. "But…Your Majesty and Archer are going to leave it up to Master Bell and Lily, right? Lily is unsure that she is up to it. Lily has gone down to the Tenth Floor and beyond before as a Supporter for the Soma Familia but she was completely useless in fighting."
"That was then, this is now," Caster said, dismissing her concerns. "With your new skill, you will prove more efficient in doing so. But have no fear. I do not expect you to fight with a blade. Your crossbow will be more than enough to provide the boy with some more support outside of simply providing a first hand account of the monsters."
Lily looked a little relieved before nodding dutifully.
"Hee hee…" Hestia started laughing to herself at her end of the table. "Like this, it feels like I've finally started watching my Familia grow."
"A shame that your all-men harem has come to an end with the addition of Lily, Lady Hestia," Archer said causing Hestia to gape at him in horror.
"Bwah!? I never considered it like that!"
"Really? A goddess living on her own for a while before a young boy comes to live with her followed by two…young men. Is that not the beginnings of popular stories aimed toward women?"
Hestia blinked and stared at Archer before clutching the side of her head in realization.
"You're right…that was a close one…" Hestia said before turning to Bell. "Bell! If you do summon another Servant anytime soon, make sure there's at least another woman! I can't be living surrounded by men all the time! It would be a blemish on my name as a Virgin Goddess! I am not supposed to have a harem like those Goddesses of Love!"
"I have no control over that though!" Bell protested as Archer and Lily chuckled while Caster simply shook his head with a sigh.
