Hello again beautiful people! We are back with chapter four! Yay!
Enjoy! :)
Posted 01/16/2021
Chapter 4- Hestia Familia
Orario- Hearth Manor
It was another normal day at Hearth Manor. While Hestia Familia is not as strong as they used to be, when they had Bell, they are still doing moderately fine.
The hype around their familia died a few months after Bell's departure and with it, his debt. Hephaestus paused the debt, saying that she will be taking her payment when either Bell returns, if he returns, or when Hestia Familia becomes B-ranking familia in tax. She felt bad for being a part of the reason no adventurers ever join Hestia's familia, even if it's Hestia's fault, and is fine with waiting however long she must, as long as she gets paid. And with Hestia losing Bell, her first familia member, and first crush, she pitied her friend and gave her one last favor.
Because of the public dropping of the debt, even if secretly it was only pushed back, Hestia Familia slowly gained new members. They were rarely on the top of people's lists of familias to join but would almost always be accepted with open arms. Because of its status as a small familia and being known for dungeon exploration many chose it over other smaller familia's such as Takemikazuchi and Miach simply because Take's familia seemed to be too focused on the far-east to some and Miach's familia focused too much on healing and less on exploring.
Of course, with Bell's absence and formal removal from the familia, the Guild lowered Hestia Familia's tax payments giving them some room to maneuver, though Ryuu's addition almost negated it, fortunately, she quickly made back whatever they lost. They of course kept Hearth Manor but with only ten or so members the halls were often empty. Ryuu joined shortly after Bell's departure, having been asked by him to personally take care of his familia in his absence. She spent several days thinking it over, wondering if she would be betraying Astrea and her late familia member's memories if she left, as well as the girls at the Hostess. Ultimately, she chose to join Hestia Familia after a talk with Syr saying she is always welcome at the Hostess and remembering when Astrea said that justice will always lie within her as long as she wills it.
She was voted captain by the others for her experience and knowledge. Welf was her unofficial vice-captain alongside Lili. Mikoto left seven months after Bell's departure, saying that she served her duty and that Takemikazuchi familia will always be there ready to help. Haruhime chose to stay, waiting for her hero to return.
The rest waited with her.
Ryuu made level five a month after converting to Hestia Familia, though they didn't announce it until a year later to keep the tax low. The guild having white-listed Ryuu and dropping all charges of murder saying that she was simply avenging her familia's death and all those killed were those affiliated with Evilus. Hestia Familia assumed it had something to do with Bell as he somehow had ties to the Guild, but they never questioned it. They also awaited any news regarding Bell. They heard stories of an assassin with snow-white hair and eyes as red as the blood of those he killed, they of course didn't want to believe such rumors, that their innocent ex-captain has killed and so brazenly at that. Though sometimes they heard of a hero who took down groups of bandits with nothing more than a kitchen knife he grabbed from a pub, not even wasting the energy to grab whatever weapons he hid in his cloak.
They found solace in those stories. Except when no bandits survived the encounter, but they brushed those off as rumors. Unfortunately, that's all the stories were, rumors. They would go months without any information as apparently, he was always traveling. The whole second year they hadn't heard a single thing!
They knew he was doing okay; however, they never knew if he himself was okay. So, imagine their surprise when a golden blur that is Ais Wallenstein comes crashing into their gate, saying she knows something about Bell.
Ryuu always tried to expect the unexpected, it helped keep morale up when you seem like you have everything under control and are unfazed when things go south. However, she didn't expect Ponce and Hugo, a male chienthrope and human male, to sprint into her office telling her the Kenki had come and had information regarding Bell Cranel.
She sat there in shocked silence for all of a second before a deafening yell rocked the manor.
"BEEEEELLLLLL-KUUUUUUN!"
That of course was their Goddess, Hestia, as she all but smacked into Ryuu's desk, slumping into it before immediately jumping up to face the guards. Sometimes Ryuu wondered how she could exhibit speeds and hearing that could rival a third-class adventurer, especially when it came to Bell.
"What information does Wallen-whatsit have on my Bell-kun?" Hestia asked in a surprisingly serious tone, with a steel gaze that sent the two children in front of her into a nervous sweat.
"She didn't tell us. She just asked that she have a meeting with the familia." Hugo responded nervously. Goddess Hestia could be very scary when she wanted to be.
"Goddess Hestia, I believe we should honor the Kenki's request," Ryuu responded helpfully, looking toward her goddess. Hestia turning around to face her. They shared a silent conversation, Ryuu's argument finally winning out against Hestia's dislike of the Kenki.
"Fine, summon the familia." Hestia groaned turning back to face her "children".
With that Ponce and Hugo ran out of the office to gather the familia. Almost barreling into Welf as he opened the door.
"Woah, calm down there you two, alright take it easy. No need to trip over yourselves on the way out."
"But Goddess Hest-" Ponce started.
"I heard, just be careful about it alright." He replied grinning, patting them on the back as he passed.
Ponce and Hugo continued on their way as Welf walked into the office, Lili on his heels.
"Soooo, The Sword Princess has information regarding Bell, huh?" Welf asked looking out the window, watching as the Kenki rocked back and forth, waiting for them to let her in.
"It would seem so," Ryuu replied following his gaze.
"Hey guys, as much as Lili hates to say this, shouldn't we let her in?" Lili called out snapping them out of their thoughts.
"Nah, Haruhime got it," Welf replied as they all watched a golden-haired renard dressed in her usual maid outfit start walking toward the Kenki.
"Ugh, this is going to be a long day huh?" Hestia asked no one in particular, as they all filed out of the captain's office to meet with everyone else in the dining hall.
Her executives couldn't help but hum in agreement.
While the rest of the familia was preparing to meet in the dining hall, Haruhime took it upon herself to greet their honored guest at the gate. Hugo said she would get it but Haruhime (politely) waved him off and told him he should go gather the rest of the familia.
She put down the broom she was using and slowly walked toward the gate. She could easily make out the Sword Princess, her golden hair gleaming in the sunlight. She stood there, by the gate, slowly scanning the front lawn looking for whoever was sent to let her in. Probably wondering if she could just jump the gate, that is until she noticed Haruhime. Her gaze stopped on her, before softening slightly and giving her a small smile. Haruhime couldn't help but smile in return. She and Ais were more well acquainted with each other than the rest of the familia. Before and after their meetings with the rest of her familia, when Ais was trying to learn more about Bell, she and Ais sat and talked about Bell and all his heroic exploits. They shared a common interest in Bell, in which Haruhime couldn't help but be grateful for. She knew that Ais was the one who stole Bell's heart and after finally learning that he stole Ais' in return, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that Bell was unaware he stole so many others, as well as her own.
Pushing those thoughts aside as she neared the gate, she unlocked it and let it swing open.
"Hello Ais-san, the rest are waiting inside." She greeted, bowing slightly
Ais simply nodded in reply, looking down and fidgeting slightly.
'Is she ashamed or nervous? Why though?' Haruhime couldn't help but question the behavior, internally of course.
She led Ais through the manor and into the dining hall. Hestia Familia itself was small, comprised of only ten members, it used to make up its strength as an up-and-coming familia through quality. That was when they had Bell. However, now it is like a miniature version of Loki familia with a small number of executives and a far more normal spread of lower leveled adventurers. Comprised of Hestia Familia's (temporary) captain Ryuu, vice-captain Welf, two executives Haruhime and Lili, a chienthrope named Ponce, humans named Hugo, Alexandra (Lexi for short) and Lucille, an elf named Aradia, and a cat person named Maisy, they were small but with a spread of levels from 1-5, they were a force to be reckoned with among lower-tiered familias.
They weren't all that strong, mostly level one and two, except for the executives reaching from levels 3 to 5. Though compared to Ais and the rest of the Loki and Freya familia executives, as well as some of their second-class adventurers, they were of little concern.
What made Hestia Familia great was Bell Cranel. The Record-Holder, War Game Champion, Hero to the Xenos (known to only a few), and the founding member of Hestia Familia. However, without him, they were a small familia with a first- and second-class adventurer and few members. Before, with Bell, they were the up-and-coming familia to watch out for. A familia made within two to three months, starting in an abandoned church to living in a Manor rivaling that of Loki Familia. A familia that absolutely destroyed well-established familias like Apollo, Ikelos, and Ishtar (with help of course, though they were often at the center of it). If not for the massive debt that plagued them the past few years, Hestia Familia may as well have been a powerhouse familia, rivaling at least Ganesha. And with Bell at its head, growing at rates unimaginable to most, he would rival if not succeed even the top adventurers in the city.
However, the familia sitting around Ais was all but a ghost of what could have been.
She sat on a single chair facing the familia. Hestia directly in front of her, with Ryuu and Welf standing on either side of their goddess. Haruhime stood behind and to the side of Ais before looking at her, nodding, and walking to sit by Lili, 'The one Finn wants to marry' she thought.
"So, what news do you have regarding my Bell-kun?"
At the sudden question Ais' head snapped toward Hestia, she took a moment to remember why she was at Hearth Manor again, ignoring the "my Bell-kun" part, she answered.
"I have recently received word form Bell through a letter saying that he-"
"WAIT, ONE SEC! Bell-sama has been sending you letters!?" Lili practically screeched.
'Why is she getting letters from him? How is she getting letters from him?' Practically everyone that knew Bell Cranel in Hestia Familia was wondering why and how Ais was receiving letters from him and not them. Hestia, in particular, just sat there, her pigtails straight up, mumbling angrily to herself to the point that what she was mumbling weren't even coherent sentences let alone words.
Ais was about to explain when she was once again cut off, this time by Ryuu, who asked the million valis question. "Why have we not received any letters from Cranel-san?"
"I have not in fact been corresponding with Bell regularly. I have only received one letter. It was short and to the point, asking me to watch over something for him and that he will see me soon." Ais finished, already bracing herself for the onslaught that was to come. A very tense and awkward silence gripped the room as the sentence sunk into those present. And then, it all went to hell.
"BELL-KUN IS COMING BACK!" Hestia practically yelled to the heavens as various shouts of, "BELL/BELL-SAMA IS RETURNING!" were heard from the vice-captain and executives, with Haruhime's being a little softer spoken and distant as if she herself couldn't believe it. Ais wouldn't blame her for thinking that. They knew he could return but after three years, they just assumed he left to start a new adventure elsewhere. Maybe they shouldn't have doubted him like that, but would you really want to return to the city that all but dragged you through the mud and threw you out, brandishing you as evil and as having a "monster fetish". They probably wouldn't, and Bell only spent a little less than 6 months in the city, he had no obligation to return. Yet then again, Orario was everything to him.
"What did Cranel-san ask you to watch?" Ryuu asked at the same time as her familia's yells, wondering what the first part of the letter was about. Unfortunately, her question was drowned out by her screaming familia members.
"I can't wait to meet the captain!" Lexi, Aradia, and Maisy said before noticing the glare coming from their current captain, "N-no o-offense Ryuu-sama" they said in unison, bowing in the all too famous dogeza pose. The males, while excited Bell Cranel was returning, couldn't share the same enthusiasm as Bell's close friends and the girls (for whatever reason).
Meanwhile, Ais just sat there dodging the fists being pumped into the air and goddess practically trying to tackle her and get more information about Bell. 'She's just like Loki, except for her stature and the want for Bell instead of "a feel" part.' she thought amused at the fact she was used to this. However, that amusement quickly turned to horror and disgust to the fact that she was used to dodging tackling goddesses, 'Wait, isn't that kind of sad, that I'm used to dodging my perverted and sexually harassing goddess?'
While Ais was having a mini-crisis, the rest of Hestia Familia finally calmed down before Ryuu repeated her earlier question, snapping Ais out of her thoughts.
"What is it, that Cranel-san asked you to look after?"
And with that, everybody turned their attention back to Ais. It was bad enough she was the only one to receive a letter, now he gave her some gift? However, before Lili and Hestia could freak out again, Ais answered.
"He…," she paused to find the right words, "..entrusted me…to hold onto his knife for him."
Hestia and her executive's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"His knife!? As in-" Welf started before Ais clarified for him.
"The Hestia Knife"
The uproar was immediate, however out of all those who knew about the knife and some of the newer members who have heard of its cost and reputation among the higher-ups, Hestia was by far the most outspoken and most livid.
"THAT BELL-KUN! I WILL SKIN HIM ALIVE WHEN HE COMES BACK. THE DUNGEON AND FREYA WILL BE THE LEAST OF HIS WORRIES! I MEAN I SPENT THREE DAYS IN DOGEZA FOR THAT KNIFE AND IT CAN ONLY BE USED BY MY FAMILIA. EVEN IF IT IS ALMOST USELESS TO HIM, I ALLOWED HIM TO KEEP IT AS A SYMBOL OF HIS TIME HERE AND HE GOES AND GIVES IT TO SOMEONE HE LOVES INSTEAD. SOMEONE WHO CAN'T EVEN USE IT!" Hestia yelled her voice going hoarse afterward. Far away from Orario's walls a certain figure couldn't help but freeze. A sudden shiver went down his spine, it passed through him as quickly as it had come. A feeling that threw his entire body into a full sense of alertness as the unmistakable feeling finally settled. A feeling he had long forgotten as almost nothing could even hurt him all the way outside of Orario, a feeling he would rather never feel again, Fear.
Meanwhile, back at Hearth Manor, a certain golden-haired adventurer couldn't help but focus on a certain bombshell Hestia oh so casually dropped, her mind too focused on skinning her ex-captain alive that she forgot to…filter…her rant.
"B-Bell l-loves me?" Ais asked quietly, her quiet and soft voice in such stark contrast to the uproar in the room, those within the room couldn't help but pick up on it.
Hestia cursed under her breath, unable to speak loudly or clearly due to her recent rant. The Hestia Familia executives merely sweatdropped at the fact that she wasn't aware of the fact. While in Ais' defense she was aware Bell cared for her, but she just assumed it was equal to his familia, however now that she thought about it, it was quite obvious that it was a little more than that. If the gifting of his familia's most expensive weapon/object and the way he so often looked at her wasn't obvious enough. Now however she is getting almost direct confirmation, that Bell Cranel, the one who somehow stole the Breaker of a Hearts' heart, did indeed love her back. She doesn't really know how to feel about all this. Yes, she is happy and relieved that Bell loved her, but she also feels like she doesn't deserve his love, not after the Xenos incident.
'How could he still love me after I practically was the one who kicked him out of Orario...?' Ais thought sadly, her stoic facade falling slightly as she looked down, her hands clenching above her knees. She really wanted to curl her legs up and bury her face in them, it was her comfort position. Whenever Ais found herself facing a more emotionally taxing problem, she often curled up on her bed or chair and sat there, thinking. She has gotten better at responding to other emotions but complex emotions such as love and affection were...well complicated. But now she just wanted to hide in a room and curl-up and her emotions flow through her, but she couldn't, she had to get through this discussion if only to help Hestia Familia.
While all this was happening, the newer members of Hestia Familia couldn't help but feel lost as to why the unbreakable Sword Princess looked like she wanted to cry, looked so vulnerable. It honestly freaked them out. They were also confused as to why their familia's executives looked like they wanted to both strangle someone- 'Probably the ex-captain,' they all thought simultaneously- and hug each other? It was all rather confusing. So, they all looked at each other, a silent conversation being shared on whether to question what was happening. Then they all shrugged, agreeing to stay quiet and just watch, as this was obviously a very emotionally charged conversation for both the Sword Princess and their goddess and executives.
"Is it alright if we, Hestia Familia, take back ownership of the knife? I know that it is a gift from Bell himself and it would be rather…impolite to simply give it away however I think we can both agree that it is still a rather important investment of Lady Hestia herself. Going as far as to be forged with Lady Hestia's hair and usable by only those with her falna. Along with any other reasons Hestia shouted out." Ryuu stated stoically, the executives and Hestia simply nodding along. This change of subject dispelled Ais' mini-crisis and she filed it away for later. Ais quickly steeled herself, before speaking.
"I am aware that Bell entrusted me to look after his knife," Ais started as the executives before her merely looked down, "…however," the Hestia familia executive's heads shooting back up, "as someone he entrusts, I can't help but also entrust his own Familia, the proper owners of the knife as well."
"T-Thank you Wallenwhatsit" Hestia answered softly, relieved that such an important part of her Familia's history was going to be returning to them.
They talked some more about other things, slowly letting that day's meeting and the information shared sink in. Ais left shortly after lunch saying she would return the knife to them the next day and couldn't help but smile to herself, happy that the negotiations went well. Completely forgetting the emotional baggage she filed away, too content on the day's events. As she was walking out, she didn't notice a certain white heterochromatic owl watching over Hearth Manor.
"Ouranos-sama, it seems Bell Cranel will soon be returning to Orario. How should we proceed?" A skeletal figure dressed in a dark full-body cloak asked.
"It seems we can only await his arrival, Fels. He is always at the center of something, isn't he?" The old god, Ouranos, asked with a rare hint of amusement in his tone. "We are still in his debt for the Xenos incident," he added.
"I suppose we are. What about Asterius?" The figure, Fels, asked.
"The bull, yes? I suppose he will get his rematch. Just as he dreamed."
"But what if he tries to escape above-ground upon news of Bell Cranel's arrival? Surely Loki Familia will try to stop him again."
"I'm sure Asterius won't be a problem. He doesn't seek to harm people; he only wishes for a rematch. There isn't much we can do to stop him anyway. Just be ready to evacuate the area around Babel. Perhaps if we get information regarding when Bell Cranel will arrive, we can set it up to help avoid unnecessary casualties. Though keeping Asterius and the Xenos in the dark would be preferable so he doesn't tear through the city looking for Bell Cranel. We should also notify Loki Familia to be wary of Bell Cranel's return, however, if the Sword Princess has this information, we can assume they must already know of it."
"How do you think the people will respond to the news if it gets out that he will be or has returned?"
"I believe a few will be quite outspoken, saying that he can't return. However, we never said he couldn't. I'm sure Freya will be pleased to hear of it, as well as Hermes. Though I have reason to suspect he already knows."
"So how shall we proceed?" Fels asked once again.
"Let him come. Perhaps it is time the hero returns." Ouranos replied almost mirthfully, catching Fels off guard.
"Perhaps..."
Alrighty, that was a lot longer than my other chapters, I hope you enjoyed that. I know that not a lot happened but the pieces are almost in place. It's all preparations for the main event, hopefully. I hope you didn't mind the OCs in Hestia Familia, they won't be game-changing or anything, they are mostly there as support. They might have a few character moments in the future if we get there, but idk. So don't expect them to be super involved, they are mostly there to fill in the slots that have opened throughout the years, for realism, to show time has indeed passed.
A list of the Hestia Familia members below.
Captain (temporarily): Ryuu Lion- Elf, Female
Vice-Captain: Welf Crozzo- Human, Male
Executive: Sanjouno Haruhime- Renard, Female
Executive: Liliruca Arde (Lili)- Pallum, Female
Member: Ponce- Chienthrope, Male
Member: Hugo- Human, Male
Member: Alexandra (Lexi)- Human, Female
Member: Lucille- Human, Male
Member: Aradia- Elf, Female
Member: Maisy- Cat Person, Female
Anway that is all for today!
See Ya!