Chapter 4 - Saved By A Fairy Or Two
Bell was on cloud nine. His "date" with Eina had been great and he had managed to spend four hours in the dungeon, before calling it a day.
Today provided a bountiful hunt indeed. With his new light armour and the emerald green vambrace that he got from Eina; he was able to make it out of the dungeon with far less scratches than before.
Now he sat at home and wondered what to do next, but his mind was still replaying the time he spent with Eina earlier today. She was absolutely beautiful, and he had an amazing time with her.
He looked at his vambrace again and couldn't help but lovingly stroke it with a thumb from his other hand. It was a very special gift to him, and he'd definitely treasure it. Plus find a way to repay her again, in full for that, because what he had done today for her was not enough in his mind.
Bell was not a very materialistic kind of guy, but he loved food and he liked to cook. However, since coming to Orario he had not had the opportunity to do so. His current home also lacked a kitchen, so that idea wouldn't work.
Maybe he should go scout around town and find other good places to eat? Eina seemed to love that, and she had asked him to take her out to more food places earlier. Yeah, he would definitely do that, but then a golden-haired princess walked into his mind.
He hadn't seen or spoken to her for over a week now and wondered how she was doing. Wait, he liked Ais Wallenstein too! How would she react if she found out that he had been on a "date" with Eina?
She might be disappointed in him, but she was so far above him in strength. And she probably didn't see him that way. As Eina pointed out earlier.
"Girls like men who are strong and can be relied on. So if you work hard, get stronger, then maybe, possibly… You know?
"…"
"Maybe if you make a name for yourself, Ms. Wallenstein might notice you?"
Bell remembered those words well and he would get stronger. He had to get stronger, if he wanted to become a hero like in the stories his grandpa told him and so he could have a harem like his grandpa encouraged him too.
But then he heard the imaginary Eina in his mind chastise him.
"I will not have you perishing on my watch, just because you got a little excited. Got it?" She was referring to him chasing after girls inside the dungeon of course.
"Yes, Eina-san. I promise." He whispered.
Well, thinking about Eina and Ais would get him nowhere right now. So he decided to go out and explore the city a little, find new places to eat and then return home to see his goddess before going to sleep.
That was the plan until a shadow ran into him in a side street near his home. It was a Prum and he was currently defending her against a very angry man who felt a lot stronger than him at the moment.
Then someone else saved him.
"Stop right there."
A forceful voice demanded.
Both he and the angry man looked towards the source of the voice. An elvish girl who held a large paper bag stood a few feet away from them.
Like Eina, her eyes and nose are high on her face. The main difference between her and the half-elf is that this girl's ears come to a full point.
Sky-blue, almond-shaped eyes bore straight into the aggressor who had pointed a sword menacingly at Bell.
Wait, isn't she… Ryū? One of the waitresses who works at the Hostess of Fertility?
"Where do these rats keep coming from…?! What's yer deal?!"
"The one you intend to kill…He is destined to become the companion of a person irreplaceable to me. I will not allow you to injure him."
Wait, what did she just say…?
She didn't mean Eina did she? No, Ryū hadn't recognised her when they ate at the bar earlier today. It had to be someone else, but who?
"What the hell is wrong with people today?! Ya really wanna die so bad?!"
"Silence!"
Everyone froze. Even the air itself.
"I don't want to cross blades with you. I have a bad habit of going too far."
The man paled as he stared up at the elf woman, but all he saw was a lethal glare and at that moment he decided to walk away.
That was close, Bell thought.
"Are you all right?" His saviour asked.
Bell was still shaken from that encounter, whether it was from that man's killing intent or Ryū's ability to scare them away without throwing a single punch. He didn't know.
Perhaps Ryū is an adventurer, maybe?
"Y-yes, thank you very much. I was in a bit of a pinch there…"
"No, I'm sorry for getting in your way. I'm sure you could have dealt with this situation on your own just fine."
Bell seriously doubted that, and he let her know too. He had been petrified and couldn't see himself getting out of that alive. It was a completely different experience from the dungeon he was in earlier today. But he was more than glad from the assistance Ryū gave him.
However, something felt off.
"Um, Ryū, why are you here?"
"I was shopping for supplies to prepare for this evening. You probably noticed earlier today that there were no adventurers at our establishment, but the same cannot be said during the evening. So if we are not fully stocked, many problems tend to occur. I happened to see you in the middle of my errand, and you know the rest."
That made sense. The Hostess of Fertility was a very popular bar, and they would run out of ingredients and wine rather quickly.
Now that he wasn't in any mortal danger, Bell looked at Ryū again.
He hadn't had a chance to take a good look at her before, but now he could and noticed something. Ryū was rather beautiful. In fact, all the waitresses who worked at the bar were, but Ryū was something special. Or maybe it's because he had a thing for elves.
"What about you? Why are you here?"
"Well, you see, this girl here…Huh?"
Bell spun around, looking for the Prum girl, but she was gone. Vanished into thin air. This also seemed to confuse Ryū.
Suddenly, Bell remembered.
"Hey Ryū, how long have you been in Orario?"
"That's a strange question Cranel-san… but it's been about… 11 years since I first came here."
"Wow, that's a long time… by the way, do you happen to know a few other good places to eat besides the Hostess of Fertility?"
Ryū seemed to tilt her head in confusion, before giving it some thought. Truth be told, she had either forgotten or didn't really know. For the past five years, her days had consisted of work and sleep at the bar. Plus the occasional visit to the eighteenth floor of the dungeon to pay her respects. She had no reason to go anywhere else, nor the desire to. Her reason to live was at the bar, nothing else.
That being said, she did feel a little sad when she saw him sit down and enjoy a meal with the half elf in the pub earlier. Bell seemed like a good guy and Syr had taken a liking to him. If she could, she'd help him out, but sadly… she could not in this case.
"I'm sorry Cranel-san, but I do not know of such places."
"Oh… well thanks for your help today anyway. I really appreciate it.
"You're welcome. Now if you'll excuse me, I will take my leave now."
"All right," Bell said. "And thank you again."
They exchanged a quick bow and then went their separate ways.
.
The next day. Bell met a supporter called Lili and hired her to go to the dungeon with him.
Her appearance seemed comical. She was about 100 celch tall, dressed in a plain cream-coloured robe. A hood covered most of her face with a little bit of chestnut-coloured hair sticking out. A backpack at least twice, no, three times her size, big enough to surprise Bell, was strapped to her tiny shoulders.
He thought that she looked like the girl who had run into him the day before, but she quickly dismissed it and then off into the dungeon they went.
They slew monsters and collected their stones. It was much easier today than normal, but what puzzled him most is when she refused to take any of his earnings. She more than deserved it, but all Lili said was that this was just a trial day.
She made him promise to hire her again in the future and he did.
Bell then rushed to meet up with his advisor in one of the sound proof counselling rooms at the guild main office.
Eina didn't have too much to say about Lili, aside from the fact that her skills as a supporter were very high. Lili was from another familia, but Eina had neither anything good or bad to say about their god. Just that their members seemed to be a bit desperate, somehow.
In the end, she respected his decision and told him to be careful in the future. What annoyed him the most was when he learned just how poorly treated supporters were, they didn't deserve that for all the work they did for adventurers like him.
That would have to change one day.
Bell then thanked Eina and bowed to her one more time in thanks, before leaving.
"Um…Bell?"
"Yes, what is it?
"What happened to your knife?"
Bell began patting each part of his gear as Eina was now halfway out of her chair, her face filled with worry and her eyes on his lower back.
Dagger, check.
Pouch for magic stones, check.
Divine knife, che...ck?
"…" His hand grabbed nothing, only the sheath remained.
"Noooooo…" Bell exclaimed as he frantically patted around the rest of his body in panic.
"…I dropped it?!"
.
Bell retraced his streets to look for his knife when he heard a strange piercing scream which echoed from the backstreets.
Suddenly, a small shadow collapsed in front of his feet with a loud thud.
It was Lili, then Ryū and Syr who came out of a dark alleyway.
After a brief exchange, he learned that Ryū had mistaken Lili for someone else. Then she asked him about his knife and showed it to him.
Bell screamed out with joy, before he wrapped both hands around Ryū's smooth, white free hand. He wasn't the only one to scream, as all three girls had too, but nowhere near as loud as him.
"THANK YOU! Thank you so much!"
"…Cranel-san. You are putting me in an awkward situation. I should not be receiving this praise, but Syr…"
The boy looked to Syr, who had a horrified look on her face, then he followed her gaze and realised his sin.
Elves didn't let anyone touch their hand who didn't meet their standards and he had both hands around Ryū's right now.
He quickly jumped back and profusely apologised for his conduct.
A few more words were exchanged and then everyone left, each heading to a destination of their own.
.
The next day Bell made sure to be more careful with his knife and it paid off. He and Lili collected over twenty-five thousand valis between them.
It was crazy.
When he told Eina, she was stunned. No words would come out of her mouth.
As Lili had mentioned earlier, Eina told him that he had earned more than a team of five level one adventurers did in a day. It truly was a shock to the system as Eina slowly stumbled to a seat and calmed herself, before congratulating Bell.
He then took Lili to a different part of town for a celebratory meal, before he returned home and instantly fell asleep. Much to the annoyance of his goddess.
The next few days weren't any different, except when he took a day to relax and take Hestia out for dinner. This was due to his 'talk' with a god named Miach earlier, who told him that his Goddess felt a bit neglected. The dinner plan failed spectacularly as he was ambushed by a group of goddesses and almost lost his virginity right then and there.
Four days later, just before bed time, Bell learned a quick-fire spell. Firebolt.
Then he ran into the dungeon in the middle of the night to test it out.
.
"Sorry. I'm not your mother…"
…Huh?
Bell blinked to clear his eyes and the first thing he saw was shiny blond hair.
Then a beautiful face with golden eyes that matched their hair.
"…"
"Are you awake?"
He was, but his mind still didn't register what was happening right now.
The face above him wore a look of concern, while the back of his head felt warm. There was something soft under it, but he couldn't tell what.
Then he realised who the face belonged to; it was Ais Wallenstein and she stroked his hair again.
"!"
Bell jumped off the floor and looked at her intensely, like she was the most dangerous monster in the dungeon. Wait, the dungeon? Oh right, he ran in here earlier and just spammed his firebolt spell. What happened? He had no idea.
"Bell, you're safe."
"…" He felt anything, but safe right now. Every nerve in his body was on full alert right now. The first girl he had a positive interaction with since coming to Orario had just given him a lap pillow. In the middle of the dungeon. Awkward was one word to describe it, but terrifying was more accurate for how he felt right now.
Terrified that this was all a dream.
Terrified that she might reject him.
And terrified that he might embarrass himself even further in front of his first crush.
"Please, don't run away." Bell's body screamed at him so loudly that he wasn't surprised that Ais had picked up on that.
"Please, sit down and rest your head back here again." Ais pointed at her lap and Bell's face lit up in embarrassment. He weighed his options for a moment and then decided with the encouragement of his grandfather inside his head to go for it.
A few minutes later, Bell felt like he had fallen asleep again. The lap pillow had no right to feel this good and Ais smelt heavenly. Like a serene wind, warmed from the heat of the sun.
Her soft white hands went to stroke his snowflake hair again and when she began to scratch his scalp, Bell released a noise that he had never heard of before.
"Are you okay?" Ais' soft voice asked him, and all Bell could do was let out a happy hum.
This continued for a few more minutes, before Bell decided to stop it.
What they did felt incredibly intimate to him and he wasn't sure if Ais felt like that about him.
"A-ais… p-please… stop this." Bell whispered as his voice tried to strangle his half-hearted method to prevent things from escalating.
Luckily, Ais heard him, and he was able to push himself off the ground and offer a hand to pull her up, which she accepted.
That almost turned out to be a mistake, when he blushed at how soft and warm her hand felt. Nothing had prepared him for this moment, to hold the hand of a girl he liked. Then he realised that he still held onto her hand after she had stood up and he released it.
"Sorry." Ais seemed to be confused and tilted her head to the side.
"What for?"
"…Nothing." No point dwelling on it, if she hadn't noticed yet.
"Did you not like it?"
Bell's eyes almost popped out; he couldn't understand it. Did this girl not realise just how intimate that moment between them was, when she gave him the lap pillow?
Of course she hadn't and that's when Bell realised that Ais was an airhead, when it came to romance.
This was going to be difficult, if he wanted to woo her. Or not. But now was not the time to think about that. Just what happened to lead up to this moment?
"Ais, do you know what happened here? To me?"
"Yes Bell. You suffered a Mind Down."
"Huh?" That was the first time he'd heard of it.
"Mind Down is when you use too much magic and exhaust all of your mental energy. Then you fall asleep." Bell then realised just how serious this was. He has fallen asleep in the middle of the dungeon. By all accounts, he should have died by now, but his princess had saved him again. First, from the minotaur and now this. It was embarrassing to say the least.
The girl he admired and had a crush on, was the one who kept saving him. Not cool and he should not let that happen again if he wanted to become a hero and become strong enough to be noticed by her.
In fact, a lot of women had saved him recently. Lili with her magic dagger. Ryū with a single phrase. Syr when he ran out of the bar without paying and the list went on.
Right then, Bell swore to do whatever it takes to never have to be rescued by a woman again. He would become a man and a hero like the ones in the stories that his grandpa told him every night.
"Thank you." He bowed. He owed her at least that much for this embarrassing mistake. Hopefully, she wouldn't tell the rest of her familia and have them laugh at him again. Like they did at the bar that night.
"It's okay, you're welcome… When did you learn a spell? You didn't have one a few weeks ago when we trained together." Ais was referring to the time she, Tiona and Tione gave Bell a few tips after saving him from that minotaur.
"…heh heh…I… actually don't know." Which was just another reason to feel embarrassed, but he wasn't going to admit that. Ais looked puzzled and then decided to change questions.
"How did you defeat the silverback back at Monsterphilia?"
"I…hit it… I guess?"
"…"
"Honesty though, I feel like I'm just winging it like a total amateur. I don't know how many times a monster's almost gotten me. I know I have to get stronger, but I'm still just so weak and I don't feel like I'm getting better at all, well, um?!" Another embarrassment? Bell wasn't and he hadn't meant to throw all of his problems onto her like that. The more he spoke, the more he just felt like he was made a fool of himself.
"….."
Ais just stood there, while she stared silently at the panicked mess that's tried to talk to her: him.
Then finally, she moved. A hand slowly reached up to stroke her chin, as if to think of something.
Bell chose to stay silent, lest he say something even more stupid.
A look of uncertainty passes over her face, before nervousness overtakes it. Then she opens her mouth to speak.
"Shall I…teach you how?"
"…Huh?"
"…How to fight. You don't have anyone to teach you, am I right?"
It took Bell a while to understand what she asked.
But once he understood, his opened bulged out; He felt like he was about to go insane.
"W-why…why would you offer something like that…?!" The werewolf's laughter from the Hostess of Fertility a few weeks back still rang through his mind.
"…Because you look like you want to get stronger, I think. I understand that feeling," She said. Plus she apologised for the werewolf's harsh words. Ais still seemed very angry about it, but she told him not to worry. They had punished him afterwards.
While Ais' words were meant to comfort him, Bell felt like the werewolf was right and it still hurt him.
But to learn how to fight? From her? The very person who Bell wanted to catch up to, would teach him?
Was that okay?
Did he understand this correctly? It's not a mistake?
The fact that she offered was more than enough for him to shout yes, with one exception.
She was from a different familia and neither of their goddesses liked each other. They would never approve of this idea by Ais.
That's why he suggested their training be done in secret.
Especially when he wanted to speak with her, know more about her and spend more time with her.
His heart pounded against his chest as he drew up the courage to accept her offer.
"…A-Ais.." He stuttered. "I'll learn whatever you teach me!"
"…Very well. I will do my best." She smiled.
Bell breathed a sigh of relief. Step one, complete. Now for step two.
"But can we keep this a secret, because I don't think our goddesses would approve."
"…Okay… I don't want them to know about us either."
Bell almost fainted.
That girl really didn't know how to use her words properly.
.
A.N.
Thanks for reading again. As you might have noticed, I included about 500-600 words from the official light novel again. This will most likely continue as it seems unavoidable, but that should be okay. Since I feel like I've added more than enough of my own flavour into this story that it does feel like its own adventurer. Not just a carbon copy of the original. Word for word. Event for Event.
This chapter is just over 3600 words. So about 1/6 of this chapter came directly from the light novel. I'll do my best to reduce it again in future as much as possible.
Plus, I'm trying out summarising the events to help remind the reader and build up to the next moment. Like Bell's first day working with Lili. Hopefully, it reads well in your eyes.
Also, you know what's weird? A level one Prum, Lili, managed to outrun a level four elf, Ryū … that should not have ever been possible, even in the back streets that both Lili and Ryū knew like the back of their hands. Realistically, Lili should have been caught and jailed.
But anyway, I don't want to change the story too drastically with a character who's not so important to this story. So I'll just leave it be.
Finally, the changes to my story compared to canon are.
Bell hasn't run away from Ais, yet.
And Ais has offered to teach Bell almost 4 days ahead of canon.
This should make a massive difference to Bell's scores compared to canon and make it noticeably easier to beat the minotaur. Regardless, I have no intention of changing the outcome of that fight. Bell will still struggle a lot and he will suffer a mind blown while standing up as his victory pose.
Canon fact: Ryū became Level 2 just 9 years before the start of the main series and it's reported that she grew at an astonishing rate, levelling up every level until Level 4 at a one year to one-and-a-half-year pace. It took her two years to go from level 3 to level 4, just 7 years before the start of the main story. - Source: Familia Chronicle and Astraea Record events.
Chapter 4: 3579 words. (Including a few dots that act as transitions and dividers)
