Author's Note: Sorry for George R.R. Martin-ing you all haha, this chapter is 15000 words (longer than the entire story thus far) so hopefully that makes up for it. I tried to give this chapter a nice mix of foreboding and tense with some lighthearted and fun moments sprinkled inbetween. Lemme know how I did in the comments/reviews and follow, bookmark, etc! Also let me know how I did with the action, there's a lot more of it this chapter! I used the LN spellings for certain things like Anya's name being Ahnya just because I prefer those spellings in some instances. The bombshell revelation from Vol. 16 to 17 hasn't been taken accounted for in this story seeing as it came out before they were translated/summarized. Depending on how LN 18 plays out I can possibly wrap those events into the story with some edits but for now I'm just ignoring it. Next chapter's gonna be the big battle so it might take a lil bit, I'll try and make sure it isn't nearly as long as this one took though. See you here again soon!
Help editing by u/Grimij_lffith on Reddit
Chapter 3: Eve of Battle
Another boring, uneventful day, Eina Tulle thinks to herself as she files the last of her paperwork for the night. It had been an all around dull day at the Guild thus far, nothing worth noting had happened. At least soon I'll be able to go home, sip on some nice wine, and read, she thinks to herself. At that very moment, however, a man barges in through the front door, collapsing to his knees in exhaustion in the process. Before Eina can even say a word he opens his mouth.
Pausing for a breath in between almost every word, he says "The….. One Eyed……. Black……. Dragon…." Before collapsing to the ground, unconscious.
"What? What about the One Eyed Black Dragon!?" Eina yells at the man as he collapses, desperate to find out the meaning behind his statement. Realizing the futility of her words she does the next thing that comes to her mind, rushing upstairs to get her supervisor.
Throwing open the door to his office in her haste she tells the animal person sitting behind the desk, "Come quickly, an adventurer's passed out in the hall. He spoke of the One Eyed Black Dragon before he collapsed."
Without taking a moment's hesitation her superior stands up from his desk and immediately walks towards Eina. He grabs a small vial from a container mounted onto the wall on his way out of the office. Her supervisor following, Eina turns out of the hall and makes her way back down the stairs. She leads her supervisor to the armored man and kneels down next to him, holding his head up. Pulling a cork loose from the small vial, her supervisor pours it's contents down the man's throat.
After a moment his eyes flicker open, still filled with panic. He grabs ahold of Eina and fearfully says, "It's coming, the One Eyed Black Dragon. It's coming for us all!"
"Calm down and speak clearly, boy. Tell us exactly what you mean." Eina's boss finally speaks.
"It… it…. I saw it, we all did."
"Do you have anybody who can substantiate this?" Eina asks, wanting to be sure what she's hearing is true.
"No, they're all dead… It killed them all…. Everybody who was there is gone, everyone except for me.."
"Where did this happen?"
"We were in the Valley of Dragons, our group was returning from a trip to a village outside of the city. As we travelled through, we saw no monsters to speak of which seemed very offputting." The man says. "Finally, we spotted something, the end of a black tail showing past the edge of a boulder. We made our way around to get a better look at it, thinking we were dealing with an infant dragon hidden just beyond the rock."
He shudders before continuing on, "It wasn't an infant dragon, we had assumed it was standing but we were wrong. Behind that boulder was a gigantic slumbering beast, a black dragon larger than any we had ever seen. Just as we made a move to walk away, it's eye opened." The man takes a moment of hesitation before finishing his story, "The next thing we knew it was on us, we tried to run but there wasn't a single thing we could do... it was so quick. My friends died one after another and all I could do was watch."
"I'm so sorry, that sounds horrible." Eina says, attempting to console the man.
"Yes, that is a very heartbreaking story. However, what makes you so sure that it was the One Eyed Black Dragon that you encountered?" The animal person asks.
"Well, the beast only had one eye. And……" He trails off without continuing.
"What? Spit it out boy!" Eina's supervisor says in a commanding tone to the adventurer.
"It…. It spoke to me.." He answers, sounding hesitant to share that detail.
Eina is deeply shocked by the man's words, nobody ever mentioned that it could talk. She was now fully convinced that he had indeed encountered the One Eyed Black Dragon.
"Well then, what did it have to say?" Her supervisor asks before Eina has a chance to say anything.
"It…. It said to run.. to run while I still had legs, that soon everyone and everything I know will be nothing but ash…. I think it's going to attack the city.." The adventurer replies, looking as though he's staring into the face of death.
No, Eina thinks to herself, we all are.
"Everybody! Quiet! Quiet please everyone!" Eina's voice futilely rings out into the large room. Not a single conversation stopped with Eina's announcement, every God in attendance ignoring the woman or simply not hearing her. An emergency Denatus had been called. All Gods and Goddesses within the city were required to attend under the threat of a very steep fine, enough even to draw Freya out of her ivory tower.
This isn't just an ordinary Denatus, I think to myself. In addition to being mandatory, Gods and Goddesses were also required to bring their strongest Familia member. Something's not right, the guild members are on edge, even Eina looks as though she's just seen a ghost. The air amongst the guild employees is indeed a very tense one. It seems like they're all… afraid.
"What do you think is going on?" A sweet yet concerned sounding voice says from behind me.
I turn around and, sure enough, Aiz has made her way over to me from across the room.
"I don't know. The guild members almost seem like they're afraid of something." I answer, taking the time to get a good look at her in the process. She's wearing a royal purple dress, the kind you'd see at a fancy party or a ball. Every one of the Children present are wearing something formal, a Denatus isn't something mere mortals get to take part in every day after all. Still, nobody in the room looked quite as good as the Kenki. It was often said that her beauty rivaled the Gods and now that she was in a room filled with them that saying held just as true, almost as many men stole glances at her as they did Freya. Many of the Goddesses present have been casting jealous glares Aiz' way since she showed up.
The girl, however, was of course blissfully ignorant of the loathing and lust etched on the various peoples in attendance's faces. The only person she had been paying attention to from the moment she walked in was a young white-haired man across the room, her love, Bell Cranel.
"Oh, hello Miss Wallenstein. When did you get here?" Hestia politely greets Aiz.
Ever since Aiz and I got together, my Goddess has made an effort to be much nicer and more polite towards her. It makes me happy to hear her refer to Aiz with her real surname instead of "Wallenwhatsit." She's doing her best to be supportive of me and for that I am thankful.
"EVERYBODY QUIET!" a large animal person barks out, ending all conversing going on in the room. "Now that we have your attention, please take a seat." The Denatus table had been removed from the room, instead now rows of tables meant for dining and at least 100 chairs stood in the middle of the room, each one assigned to a God, Goddess, or child.
"I'll come find you once we know what's happening." I tell Aiz as we part ways, heading towards our respective seats in the front. Finally, I think to myself, no more mystery.
"Now, I'm sure all of you are wondering what is so important that we've gathered you all here today." The animal person begins his speech.
"Someone steal a penny from the guild?" A young looking God says from the back row. Jeers and laughter erupt amongst the deities in attendance. The group quickly begins to devolve back into rambunctious chatter at that. Aiz simply rolls her eyes.
"THIS IS NOT A LAUGHING MATTER! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF OUR LIVES ARE ON THE LINE!" The animal person yells as loud as he can, shocking and silencing the boisterous crowd.
"No more interruptions please. Now, on to business. This is horrible news I'm afraid so brace yourselves, there is no softer way to say this." A hushed silence falls over the meeting as everyone waits with eager anticipation to hear what is wrong.
"The One Eyed Black Dragon has been spotted in the Valley of Dragons, we have reason to believe it'll soon attack the city. You've all been assembled today so we can decide on a course of action. This isn't a matter we can ignore, if we are to turn a blind eye to this every man, woman, child, God, and Goddess in this city, and quite possibly the world as a whole, will die."
Aiz hadn't heard a single word spoken after the man said it was spotted in the Valley of Dragons. After hearing that, her ears had picked up no more sound, her eyes no more sights, all Aiz could do was think, It's here, she's here. Aiz' limbs tingled, every hair on her body stood on end. Finally, after the initial shock had worn off, the only feelings that remained in Aiz were excitement and anger. It wasn't enough to take her parents, now this beast wants her home and her new family? It will die, she will kill it before it even gets a chance to approach her home.
Chairs scrape against the ground, pulling Aiz out of her thoughts. The meeting is over, I've missed everything, she thinks to herself. That thought barely has time to register before Bell shows up in front of her. Without a word, he pulls her into a tight hug. At that point every emotion Aiz had been unknowingly suppressing came to the surface at once and, without warning, tears began to fall from her eyes onto Bell's shoulder.
"Shhh, Princess, everything is going to be ok." The boy reassures her. "We can finally get your mother back."
Sniffling and looking up at him through tears of joy and of anguish, she asks "What did they decide to do? I didn't hear anything past it being spotted in the Valley of Dragons ."
"Every man and woman at or above level 3 in the city is being asked to fight. Hestia, Freya, Loki, and Ganesha familias are being asked to man the vanguard and help to plan the attack."
The four most powerful Familias in Orario, that makes sense. Hestia familia is counted among the top of Orario's most powerful solely due to Bell. He had levelled up again not long ago, making him officially the highest ranking adventurer in the city and getting himself the new title of "The White Rabbit." That being said, Hestia familia was by no means weak without him.
Through months on end of being pulled along by Bell and eventually Aiz, every member of the Familia who fought had managed to make it to level 4 at least. Even Haruhime was level 2 now. Still, Aiz wondered if they were strong enough to pull it off. Zeus and Hera Familia also had a level 9 adventurer and they were still crushed. The only hope for victory they had was sheer numbers. That, and Bell.
"Do you really think we can win, Bell?" She asks him, searching for confirmation.
"Of course we can, together we can do anything. You'll see your mother again, I'm sure of it." He reassures her.
"Thank you " she simply replies, multiple emotions coming out in her voice.
"There's one more thing that's pretty important you missed." He tells her
"And what is that?"
"Well.." the boy scratches his head, seemingly thinking of a good way to tell her the news, "Apparently, it can talk. Seems like it might be a Xeno somehow."
Aiz felt a cold chill run down her spine at his words. If it is truly intelligent, then the battle may be lost even with superior numbers. If the beast could strategize, that was a huge wrench in the plan.
"When do we fight it?" She inquires.
"7 days, they said we have to take time to prepare but not too much time because it could attack any day now."
One week, Aiz thinks to herself, one week until I see my mother again.
The clanging of metal on metal was all that could be heard for blocks around the Smiths' workshops. Usually throughout the day the noise would temper off until eventually stopping entirely, but this entire week the cacophony has continued throughout the entire night. Hephaistos gave her orders as soon as word reached her, no Smiths were to be permitted breaks for the entire week, no time could be spared whatsoever.
Many exasperated groans came from the gathered children as Hephaistos spoke, "The only time rest will be permitted is to eat and once you've passed out at your stations! We only have one week to arm the entire city, and I expect nothing less than the best!"
She was only telling a half-truth, Goibnu along with a few other smiting familias were also working tirelessly to arm everyone. However, the white lie served to up the pressure on her children making them eager to impress.
"What's going on?" A voice piped up from the crowd, quickly followed by many other similar inquiries, "Why are we doing all this? Is something wrong?"
There's no easy way to say this is there? Hephaistos thinks to herself as she prepares to break the bad news to her familia, "I won't lie to you. To put it bluntly, we're all in grave danger." The crowd riles at her words, quickly beginning to talk amongst themselves.
"Quiet!" The sudden yell brings them back under control, "The One Eyed Black Dragon lurks just outside the city, it could attack at any time. We've been given one week to prepare before we take the fight to it, one week to make sure this entire city is prepared to deal with a beast that killed the entire Zeus and Hera familias!"
Hephaistos' words wash over her familia like an icy wave, leaving them pale faced and silent.
"For the next week you will work as fast as you can, as efficiently as you can, and most importantly as effectively as you can. If at any point in the process you think the item you are creating is anything less than the best you can possibly create, discard it. We don't have time for anything less than the highest quality." And with that, she dismissed the group back to their work with a renewed fervor.
As her gathered children disperse, a small figure becomes apparent at the back of the crowd.
"Mmgh, out of my way!" The tiny Goddess Hestia pushes her way through the crowd of large statured smiths towards her friend.
"What are you doing here?" Hephaistos asks, genuine curiosity showing through her expression.
"Jeez, I can't just want to help you out? Always assuming I want something, I'm not broke anymore you know?" Hestia retorts, sounding frustrated.
"Ah, sorry Red, I didn't mean to sound angry, this is just stressful. I really wanna help out yaknow?"
"I can see that." Hephaistos replies, Hestia really has grown, well, grown as a person that is. she thinks, chuckling to herself at her own joke.
"Alright, if you wanna make yourself useful then you can walk the floors and grab any materials or tools anyone may need for them. Make sure to be quick about it, we don't have time for anything to move slowly."
"Sure thing red!" The tiny Goddess replies with a happy smile. As she turns to walk away, however, the Goddess of the Forge's voice once again catches her ear.
"By the way, Hestia, you wouldn't happen to know where Welf is would you?"
"I think he's in the dungeon at the moment, all of my Familia are as far as I know, along with a few from Take's and Miach's. I think they're gonna be doing that for the next few days actually."
"Oh, alright then." Hephaistos responds, not masking her disappointment well at all.
"Don't worry Red, your boyfriend will be here before too long I'm sure."
Her face turning the color the petite Goddess refers to her as, Hephaistos quickly retorts, "He's not my boyfriend! He's just a former member of my familia, that's the only reason I was concerned, nothing more!"
"Yeah yeah, sure. You two are probably the worst kept secret in all of Orario. You know the boy doesn't even bother denying it any more right?"
"Really?" The one-eyed Goddess asks, her usually stoic voice suddenly turning wistful.
"Yes, really. Now unless you got anything else to say I gotta get to work." Hestia declares, seemingly beginning to get annoyed by her friend.
"No, nothing else. I should be getting to work as well." Hephaistos answers, turning to walk away with a large grin plastered on her face.
With that, the two women part ways.
Some people call Orario 'The City That Never Sleeps,' that name rings extra true this week. No matter the time, everyone is active and working. All the way from East Main you can hear the smiths working in their forges. The clang of tempered steel on tempered steel sounds from everywhere as others train. Countless Gods, Goddesses, bosses, and commanders shout as they push their employees and children to work harder than ever. The city is preparing for war.
A battle is coming and everyone knows it. Droves of adventurers swarm into the dungeon, wanting to get stronger before the fight. They form battle parties and raid groups, even planning to fight floor bosses in a desperate attempt to gain excelia quickly. However, when they get to those Boss Floors all they find are empty rooms. Someone has wiped out every single floor boss.
"Dodge!" Bell yells out, warning Aiz of the incoming attack. She hops off her right foot just as the floor underneath her explodes in a molten jetstream. They are on the 56th floor of the dungeon. This would be suicide for almost anyone other than them, the monsters on these levels are very strong, spawn quickly, and always spawn in high numbers. In addition to that, the floors become like a maze on the deep levels, branching off into 100s of different paths. Most adventurers would find this overwhelming, dying quickly as they get lost and countered by 10s of monsters, but not Bell and Aiz.
Aiz had been working with Finn over the past few months to memorize the dungeon maps, so they wouldn't be getting lost. Strength to deal with the monsters was no issue either, Aiz is quick, strong, and always has a shield of wind around her. And Bell, Bell is on a whole new level, his strength and speed are insane now. Level 9 feels like Godhood to the boy, not even 20 Fomoire were able to slow him down.
Bell and Aiz are on what they call a "Boss Rush." The second the Denatus was over they left, packed a few days' supplies, and headed into the dungeon with one goal: to kill as many monsters and Floor Bosses as possible. This was all in an attempt to get Aiz to level up again, to put herself on more even footing for the upcoming battle. Two days have passed already, and by this point at least 1000 monsters have fallen to their blades, along with every floor boss they've encountered and the Cadmus Dragon. They were approaching uncharted territory, and they were doing it alone.
Still, they agreed to go no deeper than the 59th or 58th floor, the last thing they need is to get lost down here. With that they had agreed that clearing out the Dragon's Vase would be the last thing they do before returning home. Now, they were making their way to it, dodging the fireballs constantly being sent up through the floor.
"It wasn't… Enough!.. that they can.. sense us… nooooo!.. they have…. To shoot… at us.. Through… the floor.. don't they!?" Bell grumbles, being interrupted or strained during his speaking multiple times by narrowly avoiding a fireball.
Despite residing on the 58th floor, Valgang Dragons are capable of sensing adventurers up to the 52nd floor and are known to shoot fireballs up through the floors at those they sense. They seemed extra active today, though, sending fireball after fireball so quickly even Bell had to pay extra attention in order to dodge them. The floor behind them looked like a piece of swiss cheese, smoking craters littering most of what was once the solid stone dungeon floor. Still, they were making progress, traversing quickly forwards even under the barrage of fire.
They're granted a brief reprieve from the flames as they walk down the stairs to the 57th floor. Only one more to go then we'll be in the Dragons Vase, Aiz thinks to herself as they make their way down the stairs. Hopefully this will be enough. No. This will be enough. I will see her again.
The run through the 57th floor is more of the same, a mad dash across the stone floor as fireballs pepper the ground below them. Eventually though, they make it to the entrance of the 58th floor.
"Are you ready? This is gonna be the last break opportunity we have before the Dragon's Vase, we could stop here for a minute if you'd like." Bell questions.
"No. We have to make the most efficient use of the time we have possible, no breaks. Not yet." Aiz responds determinedly.
Before them lies a sprawling wide open room, granite walls tinted a near red color, a low light emanating from the crystals far above their heads on the roof. The dragon's vase, unlike the rest of the Deep Levels, is all one large rectangular chamber. It's quite a beautiful place, however Bell and Aiz had no time to admire the sights.
Almost immediately upon entering they are set upon by another barrage of fire, this time directed straight forwards towards the two. Jumping off in opposite directions to avoid the blasts, Bell and Aiz set to work.
Immediately upon landing from his dodge, Bell takes off at a full sprint along the wall around the perimeter, killing 2 Valgang Dragons on the way to draw their attention. A line of 6 of the beasts all turn their heads toward Bell and rear up onto their hind legs, opening their mouths as flames begin to coagulate between their jaws ready to burst at a moment's notice. The fire never comes, however, a silver gust of wind passing quicker than the eye can see turning the monsters to dust before they get a chance to launch their attack. Good, just like I hoped. Bell thinks to himself, If I can draw their attention away Aiz should be able to take them all out on her own using Ariel.
Attack, retreat and wait, attack again. Aiz follows this pattern like the well trained soldier that she is, allowing Bell to draw the attention of the monsters away from her before rushing in and finishing them with a single blow. Normally Ariel would be enough to deal with the flames but the Dragon's Vase is unusually active today, at least 50 of the beasts must be in the room. The flames would still be dissipated, but if more than 40 of them were to fire at once there's no telling how much Mind it would drain to deflect.
Slowly but surely, they begin to whittle down the creature's numbers by following this strategy.
Coming to his final lap around the perimeter, Bell flips off of the wall directly into a small group of the beasts. Spinning midair as he lands, the boy decapitates all 3 of the monsters before even touching the ground.
Watching Bell's movements from afar, his message is clear to Aiz, "Alright, enough of them are dead, now we can have some fun." Gladly accepting his invitation, Aiz throws her sword, Desperate, towards the Dragon closest to Bell. The blade flies through the air point first with deadly precision, going straight through the beast's chest and magic stone and lodging itself into the ground where the creature once stood. Aiz follows closely behind the blade, diving towards the floor at rapid speeds. She lands, grabbing her sword and rolls forwards, slicing the closest Dragon in two before taking up a swordsman's position directly behind Bell all in one fluid motion.
"Showoff." The boy gently mocks to her over his shoulder.
"Oh, I'm the showoff?" She responds, adding emphasis to her words. "That was a really cool spin you did back there..."
"Point taken." Bell playfully responds, laughing slightly.
Their short conversation ends there, as the two of them get pulled immediately back into battle. Standing with backs nearly touching, they kill any monster that gets near. Very quickly though, they're once again drawn apart by flames. Bell fights calmly and defensively, attempting to draw out every fight as long as possible to leave more for Aiz. The more of them I kill, the less Excelia Aiz gets, the boy reminds himself as he guards yet another strike he could've prevented entirely.
As Bell guards and redirects, Aiz is showing no such mercy, carving through the beasts as efficiently as a farmer slaughtering cattle. Every dragon that falls to her blade she imagines as the One Eyed Black Dragon, every death bringing her mother closer to being back in her life. She pushes on forwards, cutting another monster down with every step she takes, focused entirely on carving a path through the creatures in front of herself. Only 3 of the Valgang Dragons in front of her are still alive when suddenly..
"AIZ!!"
Hearing Bell call her name, Aiz turns around only to see a large claw coming straight at her face. I don't have time to move, I'm gonna have to take the hit, Aiz thinks to herself solemnly, I must have let too much distance get between me and Bell without realizing it. In the split second before she gets hit the clawed hand goes limp and falls to the large dragon's side, an orange knife sticking out of the creature's skull. Not taking a moment's hesitation, Aiz yanks the dagger out of the beast's head and turns, slashing the last 3 approaching dragons' throats in one clean arc.
"Bell!" Aiz calls out Bell's name, before throwing Ushiwikimaru back to him.
Reaching his hand upwards, Bell catches the knife by it's handle and brings it down into and through the shoulder of the Valgang in front of him, taking off the dragon's arm. Finishing the creature off with a quick slash of it's stomach, he stops and takes a look around. The only figure other than himself left standing in the room is Aiz. If the walls weren't red before they certainly are now, blood and ash covers almost everything in the room including Bell himself. Sifting his way through the large scaled corpses littering the room, Bell makes his way over to Aiz.
"Come here, give me a hug!" He calls out, rushing towards the clean girl with his blood soaked arms outstretched. Not sparing him a second glance, she kicks the closest Valgang's body, sending it to collide with the boy's legs. He trips and falls with a splash, before standing up rubbing his head, "I was just joking." He says.
"I don't want to have to get a new dress made." She responds, matter of factly.
"You're lucky, you can just blow all the blood away from you when you fight. I end up having to buy new underclothes like every other day." The boy laments to her. Maybe I should just start wearing red, the thought occurs to him.
"Well, you're not allowed to touch me or come too close until we get back up to the 50th floor and you can take a bath." She responds.
"Yeah I remember, it'll be just like when I got covered in that minotaur's blood a few months back." Thinking back to the evening of their second "Dungeon Date" Bell gets an idea, "Hey, maybe we can go swimming on the 27th floor again!" He excitedly proposes.
"Definitely. I think that would be fun, I could use a break after all of this."
"Yeah, me too."
And with that, they set off on their way back up from the Deep Floors.
Elsewhere…
A morning breeze flutters in through the window, lightly blowing the Gale Wind's hair as it travels along it's path. She's sitting in an ornate chair in a large sitting room. The person sat across from her is an inhumanly beautiful and elegant woman, her unwrinkled and perfect face would never betray the fact that she's as old as time itself. The Goddess sat before her is Astrea, lady of Justice, and Ryu's former Familia head.
"I've given it some thought… and, as much as it pains me to say this, I cannot honor your request." Her former Goddess speaks, a commanding yet compassionate air about her.
"Lady Astrea, please reconsider. I beg of you, please." Ryu desperately pleads, a rare outpouring of emotion coming through her voice.
"Ryu..." Astraea begins, sounding almost mournful, "It would bring me untold joy to grant your request, please believe me, but I cannot in good conscience do this. To allow you to join a new Familia would be to absolve you of your sins, and that would not be justice, Ryu." Her Goddess reasons.
"What you did, that wasn't bringing the people who did what they did to us to Justice. You slaughtered them like animals, you killed innocent people in your pursuit with no regard for the morality of your actions. You became an agent of death, not of Justice." She finishes, going silent.
"I know." After a long silence, Ryu finally speaks. "I became a monster, and I intended to allow myself to die as punishment. But I didn't die that night. Someone saved me and took me in, they gave me a new chance at life, treated me as their own family." She states, continuing on.
"And then I met even more people. Adventurers that I'd be glad to put my life on the line for, and that would do and have done the same for me without a moment's hesitation. People that I want to protect with everything I possibly can." She passionately attempts to explain herself to the Goddess before her.
"But they're all getting so much stronger now, I shouldn't worry about them, I have no reason to truly, but I do. I fear that I'm not going to be able to save them if something were to happen, that I'm going to lose people that I love again. I couldn't bear it if that were to happen. I need to be able to get stronger again, I need to be able to keep them safe.
Please Lady Astrea, I can't lose anyone else." Ryu desperately pleads, tears threatening to drop from the edges of her eyes at any moment.
"Ryu, I'm afraid nothing you can say will change my mind. I'm sorry, I truly am, but I will not unlock your Falna." Astraea states, a melancholy yet resolute tone behind her words.
There would be no changing her mind, Ryu knew. Once a ruling was came to by Astrea it was final, there was no use in arguing further. Dejected beyond what she previously thought possible, Ryu slumps down into her chair in defeat. Without warning, she's startled out of her slouched position by the slam of the wooden door on the far end of the room crashing open.
A young man, Astrea's new page Ryu had met upon her arrival yesterday, enters the room. Making his way over to the Lady of Justice, the page bends down to whisper in her ear. A look Ryu had seen only once before, when her family was massacred, crosses her former Goddess' face with his words. Something is very, very wrong, Ryu immediately thinks to herself, every hair on her body suddenly standing on end.
Once the young man finishes relaying his message, Astrea turns back to face Ryu once again, the same dark look still on her face. "Turn around, and pull up your shirt." She says, suddenly and commandingly. Ryu complies immediately, revealing the Scales of Justice tattooed onto her back denoting her as a member of Astraea Familia. Removing the small cheese knife from the platter to her right, the Goddess pricks her finger drawing a drop of blood and gets to work. Minutes pass as Astrea silently works away at Ryu's back, erasing her mark from the elf's pale skin.
The second she's finished, Ryu asks "Why, Lady Astrea? What's happened?"
"We don't have much time to talk, you must leave immediately if you're to make it back in time. I'll have a cart brought up to take you back right away, find the familia you wish to join and do so immediately upon your return. You have no time to waste." Astrea hurriedly tells her.
"What's happened? Make it back in time for what?" She desperately inquires, a rapidly increasing feeling of dread taking ahold of her.
"To make it back in time for the battle." Her Goddess simply answers her, worry and a hint of desperation in her voice.
"Lord Miach, more has arrived." The regal looking God looks up from his Mortar and Pestle to acknowledge the young long haired girl in front of him.
"Where, um, where would you like me to put these ones?" She timidly asks, holding a large crate between her hands, about 20 more visible outside of the store their familia calls home.
"Put them in the back room with the rest, Cassandra." He responds in a comforting voice, ordering her to place the crate among the many others that had been shipped in the past few days.
"Ummmmm… there's no more room back there." The flighty girl answers. Over 10 large shipments of various ingredients had come to the meager establishment in the last few days. Every healing or medicine making familia in the city had been informed they were to work nonstop using materials the guild would provide to make healing items for the upcoming confrontation. Unfortunately, however, in their haste they did not account for the relatively small size of Miach Familia's operation when sending out supplies.
"Ah, well then just put them anywhere they'll fit."
"Ok!" She says with a slight bow before setting off to move the rest of the crates in.
"Maybe the guild will let us keep the excess as compensation once this whole thing's over." Nahza, a chienthrope and Miach's oldest remaining Familia member, speaks up from her workstation.
"Perhaps they will." The god answers her speculation.
"That could be just what we need to get our business back on track." The dog girl states, her tail whooshing from side to side lightly at the thought.
"Yes.. How unfortunate the circumstances, however." Her God answers, before returning to his work.
The two of them have been following the Guild's request and working nearly non-stop since the order came at the denatus. Still, though, they were severely limited by their Familia's meager size. Only around 3 of the various shipments had been used out of the 10 sent total, and more kept showing up at their door. Cassandra, who was asked to stay behind as an assistant to Nahza and Miach while Daphne trains in the dungeon, has been almost exclusively used as a package mover.
"Done!" Nahza calls out. Carefully placing the many small vials into multiple racks, and then into a box. She seals the box and sets it off to the side for Cassandra to bring to the delivery zone.
"Lord Miach, is something troubling you? You should have been done with that set half an hour ago." Nahza asks, noticing his unusually slow pace.
"...I feel guilty, Nahza." The god, seemingly reluctantly, shares with her.
"You have nothing to feel guilt over, Lord Miach. Is it because we can't produce very much? Don't worry, I'm sure new members will be flooding in soon, especially once everyone's used our double potions during the fight. We can really make a name for ourselves here." She tells him, hoping to return his usual handsome smile to his face.
"Not about that. I feel guilty about this whole situation, about the battle. I could walk out to the Valley of Dragons right now, find the beast, and kill it with my Arcaneum." The god confides in her.
"Any one of us could, but we aren't. instead I'm sitting here making potions to heal the people who will inevitably be injured, and there's nothing I'll be able to do for those who will die." He finishes solemnly.
"Nobody wants that to happen. Do you think any of us would want our gods to go off and sacrifice themselves?" Nahza says, a tad bit of hostility coming out in her question.
"You can't just go out on some noble crusade to save the world and leave us all behind. I couldn't live without you…" She finishes, ears drooping sadly.
"Oh, Nahza… I'm sorry, I did not mean to upset you. Of course I'm not going to leave you three alone. And even if something were to happen to me I'm sure Hestia or Takemikazuchi would take you in." Miach answers her.
"That's not the point." She responds.
"Nevertheless, this guilt will persist. If you had a tool capable of saving potentially hundreds from death and you couldn't use it, would you not feel guilt too?" The god replies to her.
"Yes, I would…." The girl dejectedly responds, "Please… just don't leave me."
"Don't worry Nahza, I plan to be with you all as long as you live." Miach reassures his familia member warmly, oblivious to the clear indication of her words.
"I would love that more than anything." The Chiantrope responds to her God longingly, ears perked up and tail wagging.
"Now, let's get back to work shall we? I won't allow my feelings to affect my work any longer." The deity promises. And with his words, they return to their work.
9 hours had passed since Hestia Familia entered the dungeon alongside Takemikazuchi Familia, Aisha, and Daphne. Even though many extra people were present, progress was still much slower for the Familia due to the lack of a certain White haired boy and Blonde haired girl. Still, though, they were making relatively quick progress for a group of their size. Nobody present were slouches at all, months of being pulled along by Bell and Aiz had brought everyone to new heights in record times. Now the group of 8 were able to easily make it to the Deep Levels even without the presence of their overpowered allies, Haruhime's level boosting being especially helpful in that pursuit.
Currently though, the group is taking a short rest on the 27th floor. Normally it would be a boss floor but the group knew the Amphisbaena would be dead due to Bell and Aiz' "Boss rush" they had spoken of before leaving days ago.
"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm ready to go. Any time I spend outside of a forge is time wasted as far as I'm concerned, to be honest I don't even know why I keep bothering coming down here." Welf speaks up, after minutes of silence.
"Yes, Lili doesn't know why you did either." The small prum girl answers him, a mocking tone behind her words.
"By all means man, head on out." Ouka, the large captain of Takemikazuchi Familia, joins in on the teasing.
"Ah now I remember, I came down so you don't yourself killed." The Blacksmith answers Ouka's comment, not even acknowledging Lili's jape to her great frustration.
A friendly rivalry had developed amongst the two, and any opportunity to call the toughness or manhood of the other into question was quickly taken.
"Nobody can leave, we must continue on." Spoke up Haruhime, to the shock and awe of everyone present.
"That was unexpected Lady Haruhime, what's gotten into you?" Mikoto inquires of her Familia member.
"If we're to be of any help whatsoever to Bell in the upcoming battle, we all must get stronger." the Renard answers her.
"Ahhhh I see what this is about." Daphne says with a knowing glance, "There a girl in this city that isn't head over heels for that kid?" She rhetorically asks, causing not only Haruhime but Lili as well to turn a shade of crimson red.
"Cut it out, Haruhime's right we gotta keep going." Cuts in Aisha, to the relief of her female companions.
With her words, everyone present stands, readies their equipment, and begins to move forwards deeper into the dungeon.
An hour and a few floors pass by before the group share any more conversation beyond battle callouts. The first person to speak up is Ouka, in the middle of fighting a Bloodsaurus with golden sparkling light surrounding his body.
"You know.. Mikoto... agh... it's been over a year... why don't we have you back with us?" Ouka asked, referencing the fact that Mikoto had not yet returned to Takemikazuchi Familia despite her promise of returning once a year had passed.
"Home feels empty without you."
"Yeah! We miss you." Chigusa, the timid supporter of the Familia, echoes her captain from the middle of the party.
"Oh, well..." the girl begins, before quickly being interrupted by the firey haired man to her right.
"She's got her reasons man, I don't think she really wants to talk about it." He says bluntly.
Mikoto tosses an appreciative glance his way before saying, "Yes, what Welf said. I'm very sorry but I don't feel like discussing it at the time being."
The truth of the matter was she had finally truly confessed her love to her former God, only to be met with rejection.
"To love you as a woman would be like taking my own child into my bed, I can't be your God and your lover." He had said to her.
That prompted an unusually uncouth response from Mikoto, with her answering him by saying "Well I am not your child, and you are no longer my God."
That was the last thing she had said to him, and it was still a sore subject for the girl. The mere thought of the encounter filled her with a deep melancholy, throwing her off of her usual balance and leaving her painfully open to a swipe from a large red claw.
Fortunately for her the blow never lands, in the moment before it hits a silver Streak passes severing the monster's hand and head almost too quick for the girl to see. Before she even has time to react an orange knife buries itself into the skull of the Bloodsaurus Ouka was fighting, making it painfully clear who had just shown up.
"HEY GUYS!" Bell calls out, running towards the group as Aiz sheathes her sword from the opposite side of the hall.
"Good to finally see you two again, why are you on this floor though I thought you were still on that 'Boss Rush?'" Welf says to the boy once he reaches the party.
"Well we just finished actually, we're on our way back up. We're gonna stop at the 27th floor to go swimming if you guys wanna come with us." Bell offers.
"That sounds lovely Bell, we'll gladly accept." Haruhime answers immediately.
"Hmph, Lili thought we had to keep moving forwards." The diminutive prum girl mutters to herself as the party collectively turns to begin their ascent.
A few more days pass by uneventfully as everyone in the city prepares for the battle ahead. Welf, feeling as though he's gained enough excelia, stops venturing into the dungeon with everyone else and instead spends his time with Hephaistos at the forge. Bell and Aiz, having completed their boss rush and successfully bringing Aiz to the next level, spend most of their days with the Captains of Loki, Freya, and Ganesha familias preparing strategies for the battle and organizing troops.
Finally allowing herself a day off to rest after being awake for nearly 5 days straight, Hestia relaxes on the couch in the living room of Hearth manor. That is, until she hears a knock at the front door.
"Ugh this better be important!" She calls out as she stands and walks towards the door.
Opening the door, she's surprisingly met face to face with Ryu, the elven waitress from the Hostess of Fertility who assisted her Familia during the war game and so many more times after that.
"Lady Hestia, I heard what's going on and I returned to the city as quickly as I could. I'd like to join your Familia." She hurriedly explains, sounding worried.
"I thought you weren't able to." Hestia states questioningly to the woman in front of her.
"I was able to meet with my former Goddess, Lady Astrea, and have her unlock my falna. I wouldn't wish to be with anyone else, if you'll have me." Ryu responds to the Goddess in a near-pleading and rushed voice.
"Of course, come with me." Hestia says, ushering Ryu into her Familia's home. After what she did for Hestia, along with everything she's done for Bell, the Goddess couldn't in good conscience turn down her offer. Besides, she respected the elf greatly, without her their Familia very well might have been disbanded and her Bell stolen away from her or even killed. She shudders at the thought.
Leading her through the main hallway and into the living room, Hestia orders Ryu to take off her shirt and lay flat on the couch. Ryu complies and Hestia climbs up and onto the girl's back, pricking her finger with a small needle once she's taken up her position.
As the Goddess' blood falls onto her back waves run through Ryu's body, a familiar feeling she had almost forgotten after many years, though she had experienced it once again only a few days prior.
Hestia lets out a small gasp as the elf's history is laid out before her, she had some idea of the things the girl had done but the sheer amount of experience along with the full extent of her actions came as a surprise to the Goddess. Stifling her shock she continues on, hastily drawing out her mark onto the girls' back and then examining her status and pool of excelia.
Noticing a particularly interesting detail she finally speaks up, saying to the girl, "Ms Lion, it appears you can level up. I'm assuming you want to, considering the fight ahead of you."
"Really? Yes, of course, I definitely want to." The elf says, surprise apparent in her voice.
"Very well."
Hestia sets to work making that happen and, before too long, she finishes the process standing up and informing the young woman she has finished.
"Thank you Lady Hestia, truly, I am honored to be a part of your Familia." Ryu thankfully tells the Goddess in front of her with a bow after standing and pulling her shirt back over her head.
"Where has everyone gone?" She inquires.
"Bell is with the heads of Ganesha, Loki, and Freya familias helping to prepare for the battle, Welf is with Hephaistos, and everyone else is down in the dungeon right now." Hestia informs her.
"The strategy meeting is taking place in the Denatus room in Babel tower, that's where you should head. I can imagine you'd be able to help with that."
Thanking her new Goddess, Ryu exits the manor and takes off at top speed along the rooftops of Orario towards the large tower in the middle of the city.
"We should be finishing up soon, I have matters to attend to with my Familia and I do not wish for Lady Freya to be without her guard for much longer." The large boar man Ottar says to the other gathered Familia heads.
"Yes, I'm sure we can all relate. However, we still haven't solved the problem of where to place our magic users. We need to make sure no stray spells hit our ground troops." Shakti Varna, captain of Ganesha familia, coolly states.
After nearly 3 days straight of planning for the upcoming battle, the only problem that remained unsolved by those in attendance seemed to be the placement of magic users relative to the rest of the fighting force.
In all honesty, I have no idea what I'm doing here. Everyone else present has at the very least 10 years worth of experience while I've only even been an adventurer for a little over a year. I have no experience whatsoever planning an entire battle, the furthest my knowledge goes in that area is arranging a battle party of 5 members. Still, though, it's a good learning experience for me and I'm happy to be included.
I can't believe I'm the strongest in this room, I think to myself surveying the adventurers gathered around the table. Currently present are Asfi Andromeda, Ottar, Shakti Varna, Finn Deinme, my love Aiz Wallenstein, and myself. Lord Hermes is present as well having managed to convince the Guild to allow his familia to be a part of the planning, though he's sat in the corner appearing very bored. Lord Ganesha was also present, though he was asked by Miss Shakti to leave after contributing nothing but "I am Ganesha!" multiple times in a row.
"Do you have any ideas Bell?" I'm pulled out of my thoughts by the inquisitive voice of Asfi.
"Ummmmm, well the dragon's very tall right? We could just have everyone aim up." I say, painfully aware of the stupidity of my suggestion the second it leaves my lips.
Grabbing my shoulder reassuringly and almost patronizingly, Aiz says to me, "That's funny Bell." With a small giggle.
"Heh, thanks." I say, slinking back in embarrassment, my face feeling hot and surely turning a bright shade of red.
"Actually, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss that idea Aiz." Finn speaks up.
"Our biggest disadvantage is the fact that we aren't very familiar with the territory we'll be fighting in, as well as the fact we don't know where in the Valley the OEBD will be. A simple solution like that may very well be our best bet. Better that than plan for them to be on an elevated position which very well may not be available to us."
"You could be on to something there." Shakti states, rearranging the figures meant to represent the soldiers on the table, "If we place the magic users in the very back of the formation with enough space between them and the ground troops they should have enough clearance to cast spells directly above the heads of everyone else and at the beast."
"If it works for the archers, I don't see why it wouldn't work for the magic users as well." Asfi adds.
Wow, I completely wrote off the idea immediately as I said it but it seems Mr Finn and Miss Shakti think it could work, I think to myself feeling baffled, yet another thing that shows how inexperienced I am compared to them. I don't let the thought get me down though, it's just yet another lesson learned. I'm very grateful for this experience, even if it isn't the best of circumstances surrounding it.
"Well, now that we've got an idea of how to deal with that problem I think we can be done here for today." Finn says aloud to everyone present.
"Finally!" Hermes excitedly calls out standing up and walking towards the door, Asfi in tow.
"Wait, one last thing actually, Lord Hermes." Finn calls out to the god's back, causing the handsome deity to slump in visible despair.
"How has progress been on our request?" The small man asks, directing his question towards the adventurer known as Perseus.
"I've been able to produce two extra sets of my winged sandals, I do not think I'll have the time to produce any more than that in the 2 days before the battle." Asfi answers the man's question before turning and exiting with her God.
"That is excellent news! Bell, would you accept one of those pairs to wear during the battle?" Mister Finn asks me, much to my surprise.
"Yes, of course, anything that you think might help." I excitedly answer him, the mere thought of flying bringing a large smile to my face. Aiz has carried me through the air a few times in the past, but being able to fly around on my own would be a completely new experience and one I'm happy to try. Not to mention how I'd be able to assist her when the fight inevitably took itself into the air.
"Now there's only the matter of deciding who will wear the second pair." He states.
Almost as if on cue the doors to the Denatus room come bursting open, much to the still present Familia heads' surprise. My surprise quickly turns to elation as I see who's standing in the doorway.
"RYU!" I call out excitedly, rushing over to pull the elf into a hug.
"Were you able to find Lady Astrea?" I ask, releasing my grip.
"Yes, I was." She tells me, a slight hint of sadness in her voice.
"Well, how'd it go?" I inquire of her cautiously.
"She unlocked my Falna. I am now a member of Hestia familia." She informs me proudly, the melancholy dropping from her voice.
"That's amazing! I guess that makes me your captain now." I say out loud the second the realization hits me. That feels weird to say, especially when she has so much more experience than me.
"That's right." She answers, confirming my statement.
"Good evening, Ms Lion." Aiz greets Ryu, having made her way over towards us
"Good evening to you as well, Ms Wallenstein." Ryu returns her greeting with a polite bow.
"I'll leave you two to talk." I say, hastily excusing myself as I notice Miss Shakti beginning to exit the room.
"Miss Shakti, please wait up!" I call out as I rush towards her.
"Yes Bell, what is it?" She asks me, a puzzled look on her face.
"I was thinking," I begin in a hushed voice, unsure of how to phrase what I'm about to say, "It seems like the dragon is a Xeno right? Should we bring the Xenos along with us for the battle? Maybe that would show it that we can live side-by-side, we could get out of this without even fighting."
"No Bell, this Beast is beyond redemption. Have you forgotten what it did to the Zeus and Hera familias? Besides, the people of the city aren't ready for that yet. The last thing we need is to spread fear and dissent among the troops immediately before the battle." She calmly explains to me, causing my spirits to drop significantly.
"You're right." I admit dejectedly, "I just thought that fighting side by side with them might be enough to show everyone that they are good and they shouldn't be feared." Besides, if I tried to make peace with the beast that killed Aiz' father and stole her mother away I don't know if she'd ever be able to forgive me.
"That time may yet come, but it isn't now. Besides, there's only a couple days left before the battle, even if it were a good idea we need you here right now helping us to finish the preparations. There would be no time to gather them and lead them to the surface."
She's right, I know, but still I can't help but feel utterly crushed. Some day, I swear to myself, I'll bring you all into our world. With our short conversation over, Miss Shakti turns and exits the room, leaving only Ryu, Aiz, and I still present.
Making my way over to them, I say "So, how about we go get some drinks?" Desperately in need of something to lift my spirits.
"I need to stop by The Benevolent Mistress anyways, so I'll gladly accept." Ryu answers my suggestion.
"I could definitely use a drink." Aiz also answers.
"Well then, let's head out." I say, wrapping my arm around Aiz' shoulders as we exit the room.
Bell, Aiz, and Ryu make their way through the doors of the Benevolent Mistress only to be met with a scene of utter chaos. Nearly a hundred adventurers are packed in the establishment, any tables not occupied are either covered in dirty dishes or being vigorously wiped by either Anya, Chloe, Lunoire, or Syr. Mamma Mia sits behind the bar barking orders almost as rapidly as the movement of the various Waitresses and even May is forced to hand deliver some plates out to adventurers as soon as she's done cooking them.
"I apologize but I have to assist them, I cannot in good conscience allow them to handle this on their own." Ryu informs Bell and Aiz before rushing off to Mama Mia. They see her get handed a uniform and rush off to get changed as they take up a seat at a table currently being scrubbed down by Ahnya.
"Whitey! Kenki! Where have nyou been, meow!?" The catgirl waitress greets the two, taking no time at all before grilling them about their prolonged absence.
"It's good to see you as well, Ahnya. I apologize for our absence, we've been preparing for the battle." Aiz finally speaks, explaining their absences to the airheaded cat.
"Nyou and everyone else, nya." The catgirl says, gesturing around at everyone in the bar. "Mommy Mia hasn't let us take a single break, 'nyo nyo nyo, too much customers, no breaks, meow!'" She says in a mocking tone imitating Mia's voice while wagging her finger, a single small tooth poking from the side of her mouth.
"I can 'ear ya, ya dumb cat! Get yer ass back to work!" The booming voice of Mama Mia rings out across the establishment, causing Ahnya's hair to stand on end and her tail to straighten out in fear.
"Y-yes Mommy Mia!" She calls out, before quickly turning her head back towards the adventurers sat in front of her, "So what will nyou be having today, meow?"
"Jagamarukun," Aiz immediately answers, nearly salivating at the thought of her favorite food, "and a juice." The girl was tempted to order some alcohol but she knew after a few sips she wouldn't be able to walk out on her own. The thought of being hungover at the strategy meeting tomorrow was not an appealing concept to her either.
"I'll take the sautéed liver, and 2 mugs of ale." Bell places his order, sharing none of the same reservations as his beautiful companion. In truth, not even 2 full mugs of ale would do anything to the boy's senses. After his experience on the 37th floor he had developed a slightly unhealthy penchant for the stuff, and as a result his tolerance was fairly high.
"Coming right up, nya!" Ahnya says with a bow, retreating to the kitchen to relay their order.
Turning his attention once more towards the girl in front of him, Bell asks Aiz "So, how are you feeling? It won't be long now until you get to see your mother again."
"I'm…" Aiz begins, taking a moment to think about how best to put the many emotions running through her mind into words. "I'm excited, but I'm nervous and... I'm scared. What if it isn't enough? What if.. what if we lose?" Aiz asks, her voice strained with multiple emotions at once.
"We won't lose. We're gonna go out there, kill that thing and get your mother back. With me and you together, nothing can stop us." Her love reassures her.
"We just ran through the entire known dungeon together, we just killed every single floor boss then cleared out the Dragon's Vase alone in a matter of days." He says, emphasizing the sheer incredulity of their shared feat.
"No dragon is gonna be able to get one over on the two of us. Plus, we have the backing of every adventurer above level 3 in the city."
"You're right. I have no reason to worry. I will see my mother again." Just as that resolute statement leaves her lips their drinks arrive, being placed down with such haste they partially spill over onto the table below.
"Cheers!" Bell says, raising his mug. Aiz follows suit, clinking her glass of fruit juice against the boy's ale before taking a sip.
"It's kind of nice being in here when it's this busy. I don't feel everyone's eyes on us for a change, they're too preoccupied with just getting their food and drinks and getting out to go back to work." Bell says to Aiz, halfway through his first mug of ale.
"It is nice, it's a very rare feeling for us isn't it?"
"It's funny, all I wished for when I first arrived in this city was to be well known. I wanted to be a hero and for everyone to know my name. Now that everyone does, though, I just wish I could go back to being that new kid nobody knows about." Bell confides in her.
"I can't remember what that feels like. Ever since I've been able to tell, everyone's known who I was and everyone's eyes have been on me." Aiz begins softly, if you didn't know the girl you'd probably think she was bragging. "I'm used to the feeling, but.. I don't like it. I've never wanted fame or glory, all I've ever wanted was to get my mother back."
"That's about to happen." Bell confidently tells the girl, before softening his voice, "and after that, well.. we don't have to fight anymore if you don't want to. We don't have to be adventurers anymore, we don't even have to stay in this city if that's not what you want."
"But what about your Familia? What about mine? We can't just run away together and leave them all behind."
"I don't want to leave anyone behind," Bell clarifies, "I'm not saying that we just leave never to return. We could come visit everyone anytime we feel like it."
A new passion overtakes Bell as he speaks, new possibilities flooding through his mind with every word that comes from his lips, "We could move to Eda Village and your mother can come with us. We can build a house next to the lake and get married in the town square and call cupid to be our minister, and eventually we could…" Bell places his hand over top of Aiz' and looks her directly in her eyes as he ends his impassioned speech, "We could start a family of our own."
A small tear forms at the side of the girls' eye at Bell's words, a new desire for a life she had never before considered overtaking her. "That sounds wonderful Bell, I would love that more than anything. I love you so much."
"And I love you, Aiz Wallenstein."
They sit there, staring into eachothers eyes and imagining their future together for what feels like a lifetime. A few more minutes pass before, out of the corner of his eye, Bell notices Ahnya approaching from across the bar with two steaming plates of food in her hands. Bell sees it before she does, a small rise in the floorboards directly in front of her feet.
"Ahnya!" He calls out, attempting to warn her but it's too late and the oblivious catgirl doesn't understand anyways.
"That's me, Nya-aaaaaaaaahhhhh!" She says, tripping and falling face first before she can finish her sentence, sending sautéed liver and fried potato snacks flying through the air.
So much for Cat-like reflexes, Bell thinks to himself as he rushes forwards grabbing his plate out of the air and catching his liver on it. As he does the same for Aiz' plate and food he notices that she's already across the room, having caught Ahnya in her arms before the young woman could hit the ground. He knew she would, of course, a small nod shared amongst the two ensured both of them knew exactly what to do. Months on end of training and fighting in the dungeon together ensured they could pick up the meaning even in small gestures such as that if shared between them.
"Thank nyou so much, meow!" The catgirl waitress smiles up at the graceful adventurer holding her before wrenching herself from her grasp and turning angrily towards the other customers in the establishment. "And nyo thanks to nyou all!" A few nervous chuckles ring out under her intense gaze and even a few whispered words of apology.
"Stop harassin' my customers!" Mama Mia barks out, "It's yer fault ya tripped in the first place, ya dumb cat!"
Not paying any attention to the cat nor the dwarf's fury, Aiz simply walks over to Bell and takes her plate of Jagamarukun from his hands with a few words of thanks.
"So much for that huh?" Bell says to her, causing her to stare at him with her big golden eyes, tilting her head quizzically. Her gaze is quickly directed by the boy to the large crowd of people in the establishment, almost all of whom are staring at them in disbelief.
"I didn't even see them move!"
"Man, Top-rank adventurers scare me."
"Did you see what The White Rabbit did!? It was just like that one story in Dungeon Oratoria, ya know, the one by Sir Raimi?"
"I wish I could be caught by the Kenki like that."
"Shut the hell up man, they'll hear you!"
Bell and Aiz had heard everything of course, they always did. They didn't let it bother them though, in fact once they had set their plates back down they grabbed each other's hand before giving a little showman's bow to those still staring. Alright show's over everyone, you can look away now, they were trying to subconsciously tell everybody with that act. The intention behind their gesture went unnoticed.
"How about we take this somewhere else?" Bell asks Aiz, referring to the food that was now sat in front of them.
"Gladly." She answers him, just as eager as the boy to get out from under the gazes of their fellow bar patrons.
With her words Bell quickly finishes off his first ale, throws much more than enough valis down onto the table to pay for their meal, grabs his plate and drink, and heads for the door. Aiz follows suit, and soon they're walking through the city side by side with food and beverages in hand.
"Do you have any particular destination in mind?" She asks him, already stuffing a potato puff in her mouth.
"Yeah, I think I know a place." The boy says, leading them down West Main towards the outskirts of the city. Aiz quickly figures out where she's being led, after all it was her who first suggested the location to him a little over a year ago. So much has changed in just over a year, Aiz thinks to herself as they walk, rapidly approaching their destination. She was glad for the change though, her life has gotten so much better since she met the white-haired boy she genuinely considers to be her soul mate.
After a few more minutes of walking through a maze of back streets and alleyways they arrive at their destination, the enormous city wall looming directly in front of them. Bell struggles for a few minutes, attempting to open the large wooden door with his elbows due to his hands being full. Finally he sighs, sets down his drink, and uses his now free hand to open the door for them. The door swings open with a loud creaking sound as the two of them quickly skirt inside, Bell grabbing his mug on the way in.
"Are you sure it'll be ok to leave the door open?" Aiz asks him, slight concern etched on her face.
"Yeah, you picked this spot in the first place because it's pretty much abandoned, remember? Nobody's gonna even know we're here, much less come up on top of the wall after us."
"Hmmm, that sounds familiar." Aiz says, raising a finger not clasped around her cup to her chin.
"NOT THIS AGAIN!" Bell calls out, once again being reminded by the girl of the time Welf walked in on the two of them in the baths.
Every single time, Aiz thinks to herself as she laughs heartily at his expense. It's funny how self conscious he still gets about that. Welf viciously teasing the boy about it every chance he gets is the most probable cause of that she supposed. Much to Bell's chagrin she continues chuckling to herself about the whole situation as they wind their way through the various corridors, hallways, and steep stairwells that make up the interior of the city wall.
Finally, after ascending one final staircase, they come upon the exit which leads to the top of the wall. Stepping through the doorway they're once again met with the bright sunlight of the outdoors, a welcome relief from the dim magic stone lamps present inside of the wall itself.
"It's nice to not have to hide our training together anymore, but I do miss this place." Bell says as they take up a seat on the floor, backs against the wall.
"Yes… it was always nice up here. Very peaceful." Aiz says, before disrupting the tranquility with sounds of her vigorously scarfing down her plate of Jagamarukun. At her signal Bell digs into his food as well and for a bit the two just sit there, enjoying each other's company without speaking a word. Quickly though, they finish their plates and cups and end up standing together looking out over the city with their arms propped on the edges of the wall.
"It's still hard for me to believe that any of this is real." Bell finally speaks, breaking the silence.
"What do you mean?"
"2 years ago if you had told me that I'd be here in Orario, standing by your side as a top ranking adventurer with the highest level in the city, I'd have told you that you're out of your mind. And yet…" Bell says, gesturing out towards the city before finally stopping his hand in front of Aiz, "Here we are."
"And 2 years ago if you had told me that I'd be fighting side by side with the hero I've waited for my entire life, fighting to finally free my mother, I'd have told you it was nothing more than a child's fantasy." She says, reaching up and resting her hand on his cheek, "Yet, here you are."
"Aiz…" the boy says, placing his hand against her cheek as well. Without another word needing to be said, they pull each other in for a kiss.
A few minutes pass and the two of them end up back in the spots they had taken up to eat, Bell resting his head in Aiz' lap as the girl lightly strokes his hair.
"See that spot right there?" Bell says with a laugh, pointing to a human shaped indentation on the wall in front of them, "Remember what that is?"
"Of course I do. I already said I was sorry!" She pouts, thinking back to the first time she had accidentally kicked Bell into the wall so hard that he was knocked out.
"I know, don't worry I'm not mad about it or anything. It's just incredible how far we've come since then, yaknow?"
"Yes…" Aiz says, looking down at the boy in her lap with a smile. Her sweet smile quickly turns mischievous, however, as an idea runs itself through her head.
"How about we see just how far we've really come?" She says, stopping the motion of her hand through Bell's hair.
"What are you saying?" He asks, looking up at her in confusion.
"I'm saying we should fight!" The girl responds to his question, raising her fists and punching at the air as she answers his question.
"Wha- here? Now?" He questions incredulously, wondering how the peaceful atmosphere had changed so quickly.
"Yes! Why not?" She answers the boy with a confirmation then a question of her own.
"I think we're beyond the point of being able to fight up here, I don't wanna destroy a portion of the city wall. The guild would have our heads." The thought of destroying any wall sent shivers down the boy's spine and made him unconsciously grab his right arm as if making sure it was still attached. Bad memories aside, the fury of the Guild was reasoning enough to not risk it. Bell couldn't even imagine the fine both of their Familia's would receive if they damaged a wall they weren't even supposed to be on during a frivolous bout of sparring.
"Then we can just go outside of the walls."
She really has an answer for everything huh? Bell thinks to himself, questioning her motivations.
"Why are you so dead set on this?" He simply asks her.
"I haven't had a chance to fight anything since our 'Boss Rush.'" The girl explains herself, "I levelled up and I don't want my very first fight as a level 8 to be against the One Eyed Black Dragon, I wanna know where I stand and you're one of the only people in the city who can give me a challenge."
"Ok, I get that," Bell tells her genuinely, "but we don't have our armor or our weapons and we're losing daylight here. Wouldn't it be better to just wait and do this tomorrow?"
"No! I want this now," Aiz exclaims, sounding like a petulant child at that moment, "I'll go get our arms and armor with Ariel and we'll spar. Ok?"
"Ok." Bell finally gives in with a sigh, knowing there's no getting out of this.
"Yay! Wait here!" Aiz says, clapping her hands together and jumping up and down in excitement.
With an utterance of, "Awaken, tempest." A veil of wind surrounds the girl and she flies off into the city, leaving Bell alone on top of the city wall watching as she leaves.
What was it Grampa always used to say? I hate to see her leave, but I love watching her walk away? Bell laughs to himself as he recalls a dirty joke his Grandfather used to tell him. His cheerfulness quickly dissipates though as his mind wanders towards the man who raised him and a slight sadness overtakes him. I know it sounds selfish, Bell thinks to himself, but I wish I could see you again the same way Aiz is about to see her mother again. Wiping a small tear from his cheek, Bell looks back out over the city running his gaze across the Pantheon, the Coliseum, and the various familia homes and large structures in the distance.
Finally, he sees the outline of a person flying through the air back towards him at inhuman speeds. Staring at her beautiful face as she approaches brings one final melancholy thought to Bell's mind. I made it, Grampa, I hope you're proud of me.
"I'm back!" Aiz says as she lands, slinging the large pack strewn across her shoulder onto the ground.
"Have you been crying Bell?" Concern etches itself onto her face where a second ago there was only joy.
"Just a bit." Bell says, smiling in an attempt to show her that he's fine. "It's nothing, really. I was just thinking about my grampa."
"I've never seen you cry when talking about him before, is everything alright?"
"I was just wishing that I could see him again." Bell answers sheepishly, "That, and I was wondering whether he'd be proud of me."
"Oh Bell…" Aiz begins, raising her hand up to caress his cheek as she looks him in the eyes, "Of course he would be, you're incredible."
"Thank you." He answers her with a slight sniffle, "So, did you get our stuff?"
"Yeah!" She says, rushing over to where she sat down the pack and opening it revealing their weapons and armor.
The two of them strap their light armor on and descend back down the path they came from. Eventually they make their way out of the city through a large gate, sharing a single word of greeting with the guards posted beside it. After a few minutes of walking the two of them come to a small isolated clearing with enough space for their duel.
The two stand about 25 meders away from each other on opposite ends of the clearing brandishing their sheaths in their hands. They resolved to only use their sheaths instead of their actual weapons so as to avoid injury or damage to their armor. The last thing they needed with the battle coming up in 2 days was damaged equipment.
"Standing in the left corner we have Bell Cranel, The White Rabbit of Hestia Familia!" Bell begins, mimicking the announcers present at various fights held in the Colliseum, "And on the right his opponent Aiz Wallenstein, the legendary Sword Princess of Loki Familia!"
"What are you doing, Bell?" Aiz calls out from across the clearing, bemusement and a slight hint of annoyance in her voice.
"I'm announcing the event of the century!" He calls back to her extremely amused, "You know how many people would kill to see this?"
"You're weird." Is the only response he gets, well that and Aiz sticking her tongue out at him.
"Let's keep it clean, come out swinging, no shots below the belt."
"Can we please just get started?" Aiz once again calls out, even more annoyed.
"Fine, fine." Bell says, not wanting to draw any more of the lovely woman in front of him's ire.
"Finally." She says, getting into a combat stance with her sheath at the ready. Bell follows suit, readying himself to fight.
"3… 2…. 1!" On 1 the two of them rush across the field at each other. To an untrained observer both of them would look like nothing more than silver streaks, but their Falna enhanced senses allowed them to process everything even at speeds nearly invisible to the naked eye. As they reach a meder apart Aiz launches off her left foot, spinning midair and sending her right directly towards Bell's chest. Bell responds with a jump of his own, pivoting and grabbing Aiz' leg using her own momentum to send her careening towards a tree at the end of the clearing.
Aiz rights herself midair, planting her feet against the tree and pushing off, sending her back towards Bell even quicker than she had been travelling before. She raises her sheathe above her head and brings it down only for it to be met with Bell's dual sheathes as he blocks the blow. This leaves his midsection unguarded and she takes the opportunity to plant a hefty kick against the boy's armored chest, sending him flying backwards. As Bell hits the ground he rolls back, launching himself up to his feet and reassuming his combat stance in one motion. The two circle each other for a few moments before rushing back in, raising their weapons to strike.
A very loud crack rings out before they have a chance to land any blows, however, causing the two of them to stop and look towards the sound. Glancing over, they see a large tree, the one Aiz had been thrown into, splintering and falling. It lands with a loud crash, eliciting a wince from both of them.
"We gotta be more careful." Bell says with a slightly nervous laugh.
"Yes… maybe don't throw me into any more trees?" Aiz retorts.
"Point taken." Bell playfully responds.
Aiz answers by sweeping his legs, restarting their duel.
"Not fair!" Bell calls out as he falls, grabbing Aiz' ankle on his way down and taking her to the ground as well. The two wrestle for a minute before Aiz finally has enough space to place her feet on Bell's chest, kicking him through the air and giving herself enough time to kip-up to her feet. Bell flips midair and lands gracefully, instantly rushing back in. Aiz responds in kind, rushing in with a flurry of blows directed at the boy. Nearly every strike is blocked no matter the direction of attack, but one finally lands against his stomach.
Using the lapse in his guard to his advantage, Bell takes the opportunity to grab Aiz' wrist while she's in a disadvantageous position. He twists her wrist upwards before striking her sheathe hard with his own and knocking it from her hand across the clearing.
"I win." He says, his sheathe pointed at the girl's throat.
A defiant look and a chant of, "Awaken, Tempest." Is all he gets in response as a veil of wind surrounds the girl and she begins to lift a few feet off the ground.
Bell maintains his grip on Aiz' wrist and plants his feet in an attempt to not be pushed back or pulled into the air. Aiz simply responds by turning up the pressure, causing Bell to lose his grip and begin sliding backwards. Covering his face with his hand and gritting his teeth, Bell attempts to walk forward to no avail. Man, her Ariel has gotten insanely strong since she's levelled up, he thinks to himself as he continues trying to push through. Finally accepting the futility of his current actions Bell decides on a new plan, jumping back and extending his hand out in front of him.
"FIREBOLT!" Bell yells out, sending a scarlet bolt of fire towards the veil of wind. Predictably, it's deflected off into the sky in a bright flash of light undoubtedly spottable for miles.
"FIREBOLT, FIREBOLT, FIREBOLT!!!" Wave after wave of electric flame arcs towards the girl, all being deflected and flying off skyward. Before long though Bell notices exactly what he's been looking for, a small window where the wind dies down a bit. Taking advantage of this momentary slip-up, Bell throws his sheathe with all of the strength in his body. It launches outwards, cutting straight through the veil of wind at the perfect angle and smacking Aiz directly in the forehead.
"Ow…" is all he hears as the wind dissipates and Aiz falls from the air onto her back. A deep wave of concern rushes over Bell as he runs over to where the girl fell.
"Are you ok!? I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorr- oof!" As he approaches, the wave of apologetic words is cut off by Aiz sweeping his legs yet again and rolling on top of him. She presses her arm down onto his throat hard, not giving him any room to move or breathe until he taps her shoulder a few times in surrender.
"I…. Win…." She says in between heavy breaths before rolling off the boy, leaving them both laying on their backs exhausted. "And no, that really hurt. You jerk." She pouts, punching him on the arm.
"Call it payback for all of those early training sessions where you knocked me out." Bell says with a laugh, propping himself up into a sitting position with his elbows. "And this…" Bell states, pulling Aiz' head into his lap and beginning to stroke her hair gently, "Can be payback for all those lap pillows."
Aiz leans into his hands as they watch the sun set, utterly at peace with each other. A small cute yawn escapes from the girl's mouth after a while, signaling to them both that it's time to return home for the night. Standing and gathering their things, the two of them begin the walk back towards the city chatting idly. They quickly make their way past the main gate and onto North Main headed towards Twilight Manor.
Aiz begins to stumble a bit, yawning much more frequently which prompts Bell to pick her up bridal style and carry her the rest of the way. She snuggles into his chest and falls asleep in his arms, the light rhythm of his footsteps lulling her into a deep slumber.
All too quickly for his liking, Bell arrives at Twilight manor. He shakes the sleeping girl in his arms awake lightly.
"Mmmgh 5 more minutes Riveria…" she mutters sleepily, causing Bell to give a hearty chuckle.
"I'm not Riveria." He says lightly, voice just above a whisper in her ear.
"Oh, Bell, when did you get here?" She sleepily says, eyes threatening to close again any minute.
"I just brought you home remember? It's time for you to go inside and lay down." He answers her, amusement evident in his tone.
"That's right, now I remember. Ha, I beat you…" Aiz brags lightly.
"That's right, you did. I'm gonna put you down now, ok?"
"M'kay."
She's so adorable, Bell thinks to himself as he lightly lowers her to her feet. She stumbles a little bit but quickly catches her footing, pulling Bell into a hug.
"Goodnight, I love you so so much."
"Goodnight Princess, I love you too."
Aiz holds onto him for a few minutes longer before finally planting a small kiss on his lips. With a quick wave she turns and walks through the gates of her Familia home. She quickly makes her way across the yard, stumbling her way into her room and finally collapsing onto her bed, asleep as soon as her head hits the pillow.
The next day passes without much fanfare. The strategy meeting mostly just deals with finalizing formations and making sure enough horses and carts are provided for the small army. The smiths finish up the last of their work for the week before finally getting to rest up for the oncoming battle. The Guild finishes up the last of their extensive paperwork, everything that's been ordered during the week finally fully accounted for. Everyone still going into the dungeon comes up early in order to get enough sleep, and businesses close their doors early to ensure that. 'The City That Never Sleeps' gets to rest at last.
At long last, the day of the battle arrives. Aiz and Bell both wake up early and head to the site where troops are meant to gather, meeting up with each other. Almost a thousand adventurers show up in total. Bell and Aiz alongside Hestia, Loki, Ganesha, Hermes, and Freya Familias assist in handing out Salamander Wool cloaks to everyone who shows up. Men, women, horses, and carts loaded with supplies fill the entire street outside of the main city gate. Husbands and wives bid farewell to each other as parents muss their children's hair and tell them they'll be back soon. Others watch from the windows of residences, saying silent prayers that all will be well.
Finally, the time to move out comes. Aiz and Bell make their way through the crowd, taking their spots at the front of the battalion alongside their Familia members.
"Are you ready?" Bell asks Aiz.
"I'm ready." She answers, the most determined look on her face that the boy had ever seen.
"Then let's go." He says, her infectious determination filling him as well.
They take the first steps and behind them an army of crimson follows, forwards into the maw of the beast.
Up Next: Origins of the legendary beast, a major battle, death and destruction, tragedy strikes in Chapter 3: Ill-Fated Encounter!
