Chapter I
Yep, I am here with another new one. Blacksmith for Hire, another hefty crossover. The main breadth of this one is DanMachi, Brown Dust, and a few others, most of which you can probably guess based on my history. As for protagonist, I have a curve ball for you here. Welf Crozzo. No, not Bell, not some Isekai dude, Welf. How all that works will become apparent as time goes on, but just do not worry about anyone having to feel left out anything like that. It is a harem story, as if that is any surprise. Bakuto Masaki is along for the ride, as always. Enough babbling, on with the show!
A young man with short, messy red hair and silver eyes, clad in a simple black and light clothing underneath, a hefty sword slung over his back, made his way through the halls of an immense, seemingly endless cavern. He snarled as he pulled the blade from his back and swung at a disgusting, green-skinned creature; a Goblin. "These things are frickin' everywhere."
The man was Welf Crozzo, and his goal was ore. Pulling a pickaxe from under his coat and looking around to see the surroundings, he swung it at a chunk of stone on the wall and watched it fall away like clay. "Geez… not much in the way of decent materials…" Stowing the pickaxe, he effortlessly turned and swung at a wolf-headed creature with a humanoid body, cutting it in half at the waist. "If I go back empty-handed again Elin's gonna skin me alive…"
He shuddered at the image of a brown-haired girl smacking a folded paper fan in her hand.
"Maybe I should look lower for better ore and Monster parts… Right. Let's try Floor Seven. That'd be a safe bet."
Moving swiftly and carefully, the reasonably experienced man wove through the twists and turns of the cavern, descending deeper inside, the walls changing consistency and color as he moved deeper in.
He soon entered an expanse of tunnels taller and wider than above. Every so often he passed other people, some human, some with pointed ears, others with animal-like features, going deeper in or making their way out. Some on their own, like him, others in groups.
As he moved through the tunnels, he noticed a light deformation in the rock, a bulge of an odd shape. Grinning, he pulled out his pickaxe and got to work. His grin faded as he unearthed what was inside, an oblong chunk of a dark grey metal. "Iron ore…? Better than nothing I suppose." His attention was grabbed by a small squeak behind him. Spinning on his heel and kicking up his left leg, his foot smashed into the ribcage of a large rabbit with a horn on its head, sending the creature smashing into a wall and collapsing. "Well that was a dumb Needle Rabbit." Swiftly cutting open its chest and removing a small purple crystal from within, the remainder of the beast's body evaporated into ashes.
Picking up the crystal, he stowed it in one of the small sacks at his waist before an unusual sound caught his attention. Grabbing his sword, he was shocked to see a beast with ferociously glowing red eyes and jet-black fur standing before him, some of its body stained with blood. "Oh that can't be good… What in the world's a Hellhound doing this far up…?"
Before he could come up with an answer, the creature reared back on its feet, light emanating from the back of its throat.
"Whatever, your hide might make some decent leather for armor. Your funeral! Blasphemous Burn, Will-o-Wisp!" A seemingly invisible pulse of air shot from his palm. Almost immediately, the Hellhound seemed to cringe back before its torso expanded, its body exploding violently.
He grinned as he approached the dead creature. Pulling out his small dagger and beginning to clean what was left of its pelt from the muscle, he groaned. "Damn… burned more of the fur than I intended… Next time I'll slice its throat. Though I don't anticipate finding a Hellhound this far up again anytime soon. Oh well. No use crying over lost fortunes." Stowing the pelt in his bag and then proceeding to carve a purple crystal the size of his palm from its chest, he sighed as the rest of its body evaporated. "Right… don't think I'm going to find much more at this point. Better head on to the Guild to drop off the Magic Stones, then head home."
Welf proceeded to make his way out of the expansive labyrinth, out into a large, circular room.
At the center of the room was a series of doors situated perfectly apart, Welf emerging from one.
The room was teeming with hundreds of people, some entering the doors at the center, some leaving them.
He made his way out of the building, the base of a tower so tall its peak seemed to vanish in the clouds, and moved west along the adjoining road, one of eight that spread out from the tower like a wheel.
Soon enough he reached his destination, an extravagant building with marble floors and walls, gold accents on many of the corners.
"Why do I always get annoyed when I make my way to the Guild…?"
Shaking the thought from his mind, he walked in and looked at the series of boxes numerous women sat in, accepting items from the various people, or handing out small bags of coins.
Seeing the one he was focused on, he got in the line approaching her desk.
What seemed like nearly hour passed before it was finally his turn.
"Welcome to the Guild, are you turning in a quest or items?" asked a woman with golden blonde hair tied in a neat bun, some hanging down framing her face, wearing a simple black suit with a white shirt underneath, though it did little to hide the bulging lumps underneath.
"Yo, Luna," Welf greeted as he handed in a small bag of items he had gathered.
"Returning from the Dungeon at the crest of night as usual, Welf," Luna answered as she opened the bag and poured out the items, a few purple stones of various sizes, most broken or cracked, a couple fangs and claws, and one conical horn. Placing the items on a tray below the edge of her desk, she began sorting them.
Welf stood calmly with his arms folded as he waited. 'This is… what, the sixth month of Luna being my Advisor? I swear, Elin still hasn't forgiven me for this… as if it's my choice.'
"All done, here you are," she answered with a smile and put a small golden tray on the desk and slid it towards Welf.
Twitching an eyebrow, he looked up at her. On the tray were sixty gold coins. "Six thousand Vals, that's it!?"
Luna winced back slightly, laughing weakly. "S – Sorry, the largest of the Stones was damaged. I keep telling you to be careful with that skill of yours, it damages the Monsters' Stones as well as their bodies."
Welf groaned as he slumped his head in dismay. "Just great…"
"I keep telling you that you should learn some more ranged magic or use ranged weapons."
Waving a hand dismissively as he pocketed the coins, he retorted, "I'm fine with what I've got."
Pouting, she rebuffed, "Not if it keeps costing you money like this you're not."
He twitched an eyebrow as her point hit home. "… I'll… think about it."
Luna smiled brightly with a nod. "Great to hear! Next in line please."
"You're ruthless!"
Making his way to the opposite end of the road, towards the eastern side, he approached the center of that wedge of the city where there were a cluster of buildings with smoke pouring out.
On the outer edge of that cluster of buildings, a small house with an even smaller shack attached to the rear sat recessed in the alley between two large buildings.
Sighing as he walked in the front door, Welf announced, "I'm home…"
"Welf!" an excited voice called out as someone ran out from the rear of the home.
The red-haired man's expression softened as a girl with shoulder-length, light brown hair and amber eyes, with a petite frame, wearing a frilled white top that hugged her features, with a light brown corset overtop, and a green, pleated skirt that danced as she ran up to him. "Hey, Elin."
Smiling, Elin greeted, "How was today?"
Instantly reminded of progress, he hung his head. "Not great… I got home with about Five thousand Vals. Along with only a small amount of decent materials."
"Oh…" she muttered in disappointment.
Holding up the slightly burned black pelt, he grinned proudly. "At least I got some Hellhound hide even if some of it is ruined."
"H – Hellhound!? What were you doing that far down!?"
"I – I wasn't! Don't freak out. I only went down to the Seventh Floor. For some reason there was a Hellhound up there. It looked pretty beat up though, so I'm guessing it was running from something."
"You didn't stick around to see what it was?"
"It was probably just some Adventurer Party. I wouldn't want to be around when they found out I stole their kill."
Elin pouted with a huff. "I really think you need a Party of your own."
Completely ignoring her comment, he continued on the subject of the pelt. "I didn't get much, but maybe a couple pieces of high-grade leather armor or some good scabbards. So it might be worth something to a low level Adventurer at least."
"Ah…" Elin remarked with worry as he walked towards the back of the home.
Turning his gaze to the side, Welf saw a large, ornate black bow sitting on a pedestal. Staring at it for a moment, he shook his head firmly. "… No. I don't need it."
Elin's frown deepened in sadness as Welf went into his workshop. "Welf…"
Welf tanned, stripped, worked, and stretched the hide for hours, slowly transforming it from a Hellhound's pelt into strips of leather. Wiping sweat from his brow, he looked at the results in front of him, a pile of dark brown leather. Sighing, he slumped onto a stool behind him. "Only got a few dozen square celch out of that thing's hide… Damn it all… Well I guess it's better than nothing."
He proceeded to look around his workshop and picked up several left-over pieces of metal and fittings and got to work reshaping the iron and leather, forming them each into perfect pairs for each other.
Several hours passed as he worked, the only light in his workshop the flickering of the forge. His work finally done, he looked at the rather plain set of equipment in front of him. "There… Okay, a new set of armor and some basic weapons. Now to see if those jackasses will actually sell it. Better go and hope they do for once."
The next morning, Welf took a large bag filled with his fruits of the previous night, along with some other items from his workshop, and made his way down one of the streets towards the large tower in the center of the city.
Bypassing the entrance to the Dungeon and heading for one of the spiral staircases leading upwards, he ascended multiple floors, until he reached one with a logo of armor and blades, the level reserved for equipment shops.
Walking around the round hallway to the near opposite side of the building, he found a small door barely noticeable between the larger shops on either side.
Making his way into the dusty building, he looked around the many shelves and bookcases filled with armor, shields, swords, axes, and more, looking for a set of armor he recognized.
"Where…? Where the hell are they…?" he grumbled as he scanned the prominent shelves near the entrance and the front desk, before moving to the more densely packed and poorly lit shelves. Eventually he found what he was looking for, a group of swords, a couple shields, and some bright silver armor with red markings tucked tightly into a wooden box shoved off into a corner of the building that clearly had little foot traffic. It was also one of the only items there. "… That rat bastard…"
Grabbing the box in one arm and holding the bag in the other, he stormed up to the front desk, slammed all of it on the counter, and called out angrily. "Oi! Is someone here?! Come on out!"
A small man with dog ears on top of his head came out of the back room with a smile. "Hello, welcome to Armor Shop – oh… it's you." He began, only for his tone to shift and his smile to vanish once he saw Welf.
Welf hissed in derision at the man. "Yeah. Me. Why are my things crammed all the way in the back?!" he shouted, slapping the side of the box his items were crudely stuffed into.
The attendant just shrugged dismissively. "Boss' orders. Besides, none of your stuff sells."
"Well when you let it collect dust in a box where no one sees it, I'm not surprised! It's a completely stupid way to advertise!"
The man's ears began to twitch angrily. "Look, it's not my fault nobody wants your crap."
"Why you little…!?" Welf hissed as he slammed a fist on the counter.
Putting a hand on the dagger at his waist, the man warned, "You'd better watch your temper, Crozzo, otherwise I'll be getting the guards involved with this."
Snarling, Welf slung the bag over his back and tucked the box under his arm. "Fine! But I'm taking my stuff with me and finding someone that will sell it!"
The dog-eared man merely spat as he turned. "Not like we're losing any money."
Welf twitched an eyebrow before turning and leaving.
Welf hung his head as he walked away from the Tower. "I say that… but I can't think of anywhere else to take it… Just great…" As he walked, he felt a sudden, unexpected, and very slight, thump against his side, following by something hitting the ground.
Turning to the side, he saw a girl with long, glossy black hair tied in twintails with weak blue ties, bright sapphire blue eyes, wearing an extremely tight, very short, white dress with a blue ribbon looped around her arms, back and waist, long white gloves, and white sandals, though what stood out most was, despite her childish appearance overall, were her voluptuous breasts, held aloft by the ribbon.
Blinking in confusion he got his attention back and realized she had bumped into him. "Oh. Sorry about that, Miss…"
Collecting herself suddenly and standing up, the girl laughed uncomfortably. "S – Sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going…!"
Welf frowned in thought. 'That face… is she a goddess?' "It's okay, Miss."
"Oh, right, my name's Hestia. I'd say I'm the head of the Hestia Familia but…" she began before slumping her shoulders in defeat, "there's no members…"
"Ah…" he exhaled a sympathetic sigh, "tough luck, huh? Boy is that something I'm familiar with…"
Hestia looked at everything he was carrying in confusion. "But you've got all that stuff."
Welf nodded before shrugging. "Yeah, but it's stuff I made. I'm trying to sell it, but everyone I bring it to makes it impossible for it to sell. Bastards keep it stuffed in a box and leave them in the back of the room, out of sight."
"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that…"
Welf smiled and shrugged again. "It's okay. Just need to find an honest merchant to sell this."
Hearing this, Hestia suddenly went quiet and examined her feet as she twitched her fingers tentatively. After a moment she finally spoke up. "… I know this may sound a bit forced but… my boss might be willing to sell your stuff."
The red-haired man raised an intrigued eyebrow at the proclamation. "Oh?"
His interest excited the girl. "Yeah, she's the owner of Wiz's Wares!"
"Huh. Well lead the way, Hestia."
The petite goddess nodded with a bright smile before spinning on her heels. "This way, um… what's your name again?"
"Welf Crozzo."
"This is a nice little shop," Welf remarked as Hestia took him to a small storefront on the northeast edge of town, near the wall surrounding the city.
Hestia excitedly ran into the shop, a bell on the door chiming as it opened. "Miss Wiz, great news!"
Behind the counter Welf heard a muffled thump followed by a small whimper.
After a moment, a young woman with long, flowing, chestnut brown that reached her thin waist stood up, her voluptuous chest shifting in her tight-fitting purple robe as she did, only one of her dark chestnut eyes peeking out under her fringe, her fair skin almost shining.
Welf stood stock still as he looked at the pale beauty. 'Huge!' "H – Hello, I assume you're Wiz?"
Whining weakly and rubbing the top of her head, the woman nodded. "Yes, I'm Wiz. Hestia, isn't your shift over already?"
"Yeah, but I ran into a smith!" Hestia exclaimed.
That got the woman's attention. "A smith? One that wants to sell here?" she questioned before finally turning her attention to Welf.
Welf walked up to the counter she stood behind and put the large box of items on it.
Wiz stared at it for a moment before looking at him, seeming perplexed. "All that gear?"
"Plus the stuff in this bag. If you think it'll sell."
Wiz's one visible eye went wide. "That's quite a lot, are you sure?"
"Well it's not like I'm selling any of this crap anywhere else."
That seemed to catch the beautiful brunette off guard. "R – Really?!" Looking over the collection of armor, weapons, and equipment quickly to check, she looked back up at the man. "But these are rather high quality."
Welf just sighed. "I know. But those jackasses said they won't sell." Clicking his tongue angrily to the side, he added, "Though that might be because they kept them in a box in the back." Rubbing his head in frustration, he noted to himself aloud, "I know I'm just a Level One smith, but don't treat me like trash… assholes…"
"Um… are you okay?" Wiz asked, tilting her head to the side slightly in thought.
Welf shook his head before forcing a smile. "Yeah, just grumbling to myself. So, think you can sell my stuff?"
Wiz nodded with a small, cordial smile. "Sure. I have some unused mannequins I can put the armor on and can probably set the armor over there."
Welf just shrugged. "Sure. However you think it'll sell, do that. What's your profit cut?"
Wiz put a finger on her chin in thought. "Hmm… thirty-five percent? O – Or is that too much?"
Welf was surprised by that reaction. "No, it's actually more than I usually get."
Wiz looked at him in confusion for a moment. "What's your usual split then?"
"They get seventy and I keep thirty."
"Oh…" she mumbled, almost saddened.
"So thirty-five is fine by me."
"Right," she answered with a nod. "Do you have any of your other items being sold elsewhere?"
Welf just sighed. "If you mean actually changing hands, no. If you mean sitting in the dusty corner of a shop owned by a dickhead, yes."
"I see…"
"If you're willing, I'll bring everything else here too."
"Of course I am," she answered with a smile.
"Right. Then I'll stop back by in a couple days."
Wiz nodded with a smile and waved as he left.
"See, what'd I tell ya?!" Hestia asked with excitement after the man was gone. "Now we've got more to sell!"
"We do…" Wiz responded, lost in thought.
Hestia noticed her boss' consternation and decided to poke the issue. "You okay?"
"Yes… I'm just trying to figure it out…"
"Figure what?"
"Why that man is so familiar…"
"Maybe you've seen him before?" Hestia asked, tilting her head curiously.
Wiz put a hand on her chin in deep, unproductive thought. "Maybe… but where…?"
Hestia just shrugged in response. "I don't know. You want me to write up a contract with Crozzo?"
That seemed to spark something in the brunette's mind when she turned to Hestia with an excitement unusual to her placid face. "Crozzo!?"
Hestia lurched back in fear at the reaction. "Kya! Why'd you suddenly scream?!"
Wiz stood still for a moment before she began shaking.
Welf stumbled as a burly arm forcibly ushered him out a store, a sack full of his wares flung on his back. Turning to the short, muscular man, Welf growled at him. "Don't have to be so rude, jackass! All I came for was to remove my stuff that you won't sell!"
The man huffed angrily as he turned and slammed the door.
Hissing before moving down the street, Welf growled to himself, "They don't wanna sell my stuff and then get pissed when I tell them I want it back. The hell do these assholes want? Bastards…" Hefting the bag over his shoulder he increased his pace back to his home.
"You took all your items from the stores!?" Elin asked in disbelief.
"Yep," Welf answered simply as he slumped one of many large bags of forged items onto the floor.
Elin, in disbelief, stammered an argument. "I – I know you have faith in me to sell your equipment here, but to try and sell it all is –!"
Welf put up a hand, cutting her off. "Don't worry, you don't need to and I'm not expecting you to. There's a place I found that practically jumped in joy to get my things."
Elin was so shocked by that announcement her thoughts stopped instantly. "… R – Really?" was all she could force out.
"Yep," he returned with a bright grin. "It's run by a woman named Wiz."
Elin shot a knowing look at him, confusing the man.
"What?"
Before she could answer, the door swung open and an exhausted girl stumbled in. "I'm home…!"
"Ah, welcome home, Titta," Welf greeted the petite girl with light brown twintails and matching chestnut eyes.
"Welf!" she cheered as she ran up to him, stopping when she saw the massive pile of boxes behind him. "W – We're not moving again are we!?"
"No, we're not."
Titta sighed heavily in relief before a new question came. "Then what's with all this stuff?"
Elin pouted and pointed at Welf. "Welf has decided to pull all of his things from the various stores and hedge his bets on a single shop."
Folding his arms, Welf rebuffed, "Well it's better than letting them rust in a shop that will never sell them."
Titta clenched her fists as her ponytails practically shot up in furor. "You can"t seriously expect Sis to try and sell enough of this stuff to make us money, do you?!"
Welf sighed at the repeat argument. "Like I told Elin, it's not the small shop we have here. It's another shop called Wiz's Wares."
Titta blinked in consideration. "Oh…"
"So after I get everything sorted I'm taking it to her."
"… Right…" she responded apprehensively.
"Is something wrong, Titta?"
"Nothing." 'I hope she won't be competition…'
Welf raised an eyebrow before shrugging. "Well I'm beat after all that, so I'm heading to bed. So goodnight, you two."
Both just stared at him silently.
After a moment, Titta looked at Elin. "… We're going to look into Wiz's shop, aren't we?"
"Was there any doubt?"
"Just making sure. Should we bring some boxes along?"
Elin looked at her sister in confusion. "What?"
"Nothing. When are we leaving?"
"Now would be good."
"Right…"
Wiz hummed to herself as she put small bags of colored sand onto a shelf. "I wonder if it really is him…" As she thought to herself, the door to her shop opened, startling her and causing her to stumble back, knocking over several of the bags in the process. "Oh no!"
Elin and Titta slowly leaned past the open door into the shop.
"Um… hello…?" Elin asked timidly as she looked inside.
"Kyaa!" Wiz shrieked in horror.
The girls both rushed in and saw Wiz sitting on the floor, coated in multi-colored dust. Though that is not what grabbed their attention most.
"Wh – Why is this happening!?" Wiz exclaimed as she held her chest.
Titta and Elin were gob smacked by not only the sheer size of her orbs, the clear dark spots where they were leaking. 'She lactates naturally and has giant tits!?' they both shouted in their minds. 'We are screwed!'
Wiz, however, just sat, silently trembling. "Why do things like this happen to me…?" She then noticed Titta and Elin, standing in the doorway staring at her. She shrank into herself at that moment and was on the verge of crying.
Seeing that, Titta flinched to her senses and looked at her sister. "Sh – Should we do something…?"
"I don't know…" Elin remarked apprehensively.
"Well we can't just leave her like this…"
Elin wracked her brain silently before grumbling. "I – I know… oh… dammit!" Shaking her head and rushing up to the whimpering brunette, she reached out a hand. "N – Need some help?"
"Please…" she pleaded with a sniffle.
"Right," Elin answered, helping her stand. "So what happened, Ms…?"
"Wiz… my name is Wiz… W – Wiz Wintanola…"
"Right. So what happened?"
"I was putting away these magic salts and the door spooked me, it spilled on me, and now…" she trailed off as she looked down at her slowly moistening dress, "they're leaking…"
"… Eh?" Titta sputtered as she thought.
"Wait…" Elin remarked before the sisters look at each other.
'Does that mean… it's our fault…?' they thought in unison.
"A – Anyway…" Wiz stammered, trying to break the perceived tension in the room. "H – How can I help you two?"
Elin and Titta looked at her in confusion.
"I thought we were going to help you?" Elin retorted.
"O – Oh right…" she stuttered, remembering her soaking issue.
Elin's brow went almost completely flat. 'She's…'
'A complete airhead…' Titta unconsciously finished.
The two just sighed heavily.
The next morning, with sun barely peeking in through the window, Welf groaned as he woke up. 'Damn… I must've worked up a bigger fatigue than I thought yesterday… I feel so heavy…' Attempting to sit up, he realized that rather than his own weight, something was holding him down. Looking to his sides, he got his answer. Elin and Titta, both completely passed out, and seemingly exhausted, flanking him. "… What the hell!?"
"Loud…" Elin grumbled as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
"Is it morning already Sis…?" Titta asked as she slowly awoke, though did not move.
"No clue…"
"It is," Welf answered bluntly, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Welf…?" the two asked, Titta finally opening her eyes.
"Yes, me," he answered firmly, his annoyance growing stronger.
The two laid quietly as they began to comprehend what was going on before both of their faces turned bright red. "Kyaa!" they let out with a loud shriek.
"Oh now you both react!" Welf grumbled.
"Wh – Why are you in my bed!?" Titta shouted in confused worry.
"Your bed!?" Elin shot back. "How come you two are in my bed!?"
Welf snarled before forcing himself up and shouting, "You're both in my bed dammit!"
The two just stared at him. "… E – Eh?"
Soon after, Welf, red in the face, sat silently at the table with breakfast.
Titta and Elin also both sat silently, blushing brightly.
After a pregnant silence, Welf finally urged, "L – Let's just get ready for the day and forget any of this happened."
To which the two girls nodded slowly. 'Though… it was rather comfy…'
As the day began, Hestia and Wiz were putting items on the shelves, arranging them for customers to see and ensuring they looked as pristine as possible.
As they worked, Hestia noticed a slight discomfort in some of her boss' movements. "Are you okay, Miss Wiz?"
"I – I'm okay…" Wiz answered with no small amount of hesitation.
As if to taunt her, the door to the shop suddenly burst open as Welf arrived.
"Kya!" Wiz exclaimed in surprise, dropping the bottle she was holding.
"I'm here, and I brought all my – huh?" Welf began, trailing off when he saw Wiz splayed out on the floor, covered in gel. "Wh – What the hell…?"
"Why does this always happen…?" she moaned before looking up and seeing Welf in the room, which caused her to instantly shrink into herself.
"M – Miss Wiz!" Hestia exclaimed as she ran up to her.
Welf could do nothing but stare in bemusement.
Wiz stood up and did her best to clean off the gel. "I – I'm sorry about this, I don't know why this keeps happening…!"
The redhead tilted his head in confusion. "'Keeps' happening? This is the first time it happened."
Wringing out her dress, Wiz explained, "When those two came last night it happened too. And before that I ended up spilling a mass of honey on myself… and before that sneezing into fire dust… and before that…"
"A – Alright, I get it. Just get cleaned up, please…"
"R – Right…"
"So much stuff!" Hestia exclaimed at the massive pile of boxes.
"Is all this yours?" Wiz asked in surprise.
Welf nodded with a hint of confidence before sighing. "Yep. It's all the stuff those jerks wouldn't sell…"
Wiz then noticed an exhausted Elin and Titta sitting next to the pile. "Oh, you're the two from last night."
Welf stood silently before turning to them. "What did you two do…?"
"N – Nothing…" Elin responded weakly, with a faint laugh.
Welf just stared at them incredulous.
After a few seconds of silence, Titta could not control her guilt and bowed in deep apology. "… Weaccidentlycausedhertoknockovermagicdustthatmadeherlactate!"
Welf looked at the two before sighing heavily. "And you were here… because…?"
Titta hummed and mused, failing to think of an excuse, though Elin eventually stepped in. "To see where we will be putting your merchandise."
He narrowed his eyes in thought before deciding to drop it. "Right… well I'll be sure to get that sorted out with Wiz."
"Right…" Elin answered, less than pleased with his response.
Wiz, looking over the various crates and sacks of items, turned to Welf in surprise. "S – So you're really okay with giving me all this to sell?"
Welf just shrugged in defeat. "Not like anyone is beating down my door for it."
That got the woman's expressions shifting more, confused. "Why though?" she wondered aloud as she picked up a piece of silver armor with red accents to it. "This is all great work."
"It's because I'm the one who made it," he explained bluntly.
Wiz blinked a few times before turning to him, completely bewildered. "Okay…? Why?"
"The other blacksmiths kind of hate my guts. So most of them bribe or influence the shopkeepers to either not sell my stuff or to put it somewhere where it's guaranteed to just collect dust."
Her expression dropped in realization. "Oh… Well that won't happen here," she encouraged resolutely.
"We'll see," he rebuffed, a combination of not believing her and not caring.
His flippancy to her words caused her mouth to curl downward somberly.
Motioning to the armor and weapons he had brought, he explained, "You can pretty much set this stuff up however you want. I've got the prices written on each of them."
She nodded in understanding as she put down the piece she was holding and turned to the back of the shop. "Right. I'll go see if I have any mannequins for the armor."
"Sounds good." As she made her way to the back, he decided a little good will might go a long way. "… Hey, Wiz."
She just hummed in thought as she glanced back at him.
"… Thanks."
She closed her eyes with a smile before disappearing into the back room.
That little exchange had Titta and Elin sending sideways glances at the redhead. Though he seemed not to notice.
"Alright, let's head home," he urged, not noticing the girls' annoyed retorts as they followed him.
As the trio made their way back home, Welf was drawn by the sound of a cascade of thumping noises. Going around the corner and through several back streets, he came out on Northwest Main and saw a long line of men in matching red coats and black pants, all holding long rifles with large trigger guards.
"What's that about? Those guys have some pretty advanced weapons. Repeating rifles, right?"
"I think they're from Atismata," Elin interjected.
"Why the hell are they in Orario? And in such large numbers."
"I couldn't say…"
Eventually, Titta noticed the way in which the line of soldiers were heading. "Hey, they're going to the Guild building."
Welf narrowed his eyes in suspicion and ducked back into the shadows of the side streets. "… Let's follow them."
"Right…" Elin answered uncertainly.
Following the group around the corner, Welf saw as the soldiers marched into the Guild building, pushing aside any Adventurers and merchants they came across. "… I don't like this…"
Before they could get much farther, they were intercepted by one of Luna's coworkers. A young woman with short, shoulder-length, light brown hair, slightly pointed ears, and bright green eyes hidden behind frameless round glasses, wearing a formal black suit that hugged her modest figure.
"E – Eina, this isn't a good idea…" Luna warned in concern.
The brunette, Eina, however, wasn't listening, and confronted the soldier leading the group. "I'm sorry, but without a permit, the military of one of the nations can't enter the Guild building. I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Understood?"
The man walked up to her, intending to intimidate her with the fact he was much taller than her. "We have reason to believe this city is harboring a fugitive of the Kingdom of Atismata."
Eina was unfazed. Which is when one of the back doors to the Guild building swung open.
"And?" a new voice asked with intense irritation.
The Adventurers and merchants all made room, even Eina and Luna backing away as the person from the back approached the soldiers. A tall, voluptuous woman with long, light blonde hair that reached her knees, brilliant emerald eyes, and a black, pinstripe suit that hugged her body. She bared her eyes on the commander of the soldiers with extreme annoyance.
"H – Huh?" the soldier asked as the woman walked up to him, her slightly smaller stature doing nothing to dispel the vicious aura about her.
The blonde stated bluntly, "Orario is neutral ground. What's considered a crime in one country might not be in another, and even if it's considered a crime in both, Orario might not give a damn about it. Which is why you weapon-toting imbeciles can't just go poking around my city without your papers. So unless you have a written order from your ruler with my seal of approval on it, you can march your happy ass out of here." She then cracked her knuckles and added, "Of course, if you refuse to leave on your own I can always show you the door myself." She smiled widely at him. "And I would be very happy to do that right now."
One of the soldiers next to the captain spoke up. "… S – Sir –"
He was interrupted by the captain himself, who was mostly unfazed by the blonde. "The person we're looking for –"
"Don't care," she interrupted. "I told you what you have to do if you want any jurisdiction here. Come back with the proper forms and I'd be more than happy to help with your investigation. Until then, leave or buy a shipment of Magic Stones."
The man's patience was running thin with the woman's brash attitude. "Now listen here. The fugitive we're looking for stole experimental Dragride technology and likely plans to sell it in your city."
"And?" she replied bluntly.
He finally growled at her in anger. "Huh? What do you mean and?!"
"Exactly what I mean. Anyone is allowed to sell anything in my city except for slaves. Now place an order, leave, or force me to make you leave."
The second in command put a hand on the captain's shoulder to try and prevent a physical confrontation. "Sir, I think we should come back later."
"Tch. The Kingdom of Atismata won't forget this, bitch."
Outside, Welf sighed as he stood up. "Come on, let's go, it looks like this is over. It was pretty uneventf –"
He was interrupted as the captain came flying out of the Guild building and slammed into one of the buildings on the opposite side of the road, slumping to the ground unconscious with a dent in the center of his armor.
"… Nevermind."
"C – Captain!" the second soldier exclaimed as he and several others came running out to their commander.
The blonde, her clenched fist still raised, shouted, "Tell your boss that the next shipment will cost an additional fifty percent because of his actions!"
The soldiers left the city angrily, carrying their unconscious leader.
"Idiots," the blonde cursed before turning around. "Alright, get back to work!"
As they did, something caught Titta's attention nearby.
"Come on, let's head back. The party's over," Welf urged, Titta and Elin following him.
Back at his workshop, Welf hammered and shaped a piece of armor when Titta walked in. "Hey, Welf."
"Yeah?" he asked, focusing on the armor.
"Think you can use these?"
"Use what?" he asked, glancing over as Titta placed a long rifle and a short pistol with a cylinder in the middle on his desk.
"… Sure."
Elin, who was helping Welf in the shop, saw this and gaped. "Titta!? Where'd you get those!"
"That soldier dropped them when Ms. Cassandra punched him."
"That doesn't mean you can take them," she argued vehemently.
"He just left them, so he didn't seem to want them."
Elin glanced at Welf, who just shrugged.
"She's got a point."
The brunette sighed heavily. "He got punched unconscious."
Welf folded his arms obstinately. "Well his friends should've gotten them. They're mine now."
"And the ammunition?"
Picking up the rifle, he pulled the lever and saw a round set in the chamber. Placing it back down, he flipped open the loading gate on the site of the pistol and saw that its cylinder too had several rounds. "They're both loaded. I can probably figure out how to make it myself."
She twitched an eyebrow in response. "Fine…"
Grinning excitedly, Welf looked over the weapons. "Now for the fun part."
"Oh no…"
Welf had the two weapons disassembled and unloaded on his workbench, looking over the various parts. "These were forged pretty cheaply. They might have even been just cast. Should be able to make my own. Hell maybe even make improved versions. Gonna need to find where to source the wood though. Hmm… I think the Middle Floors have good trees. Now how to get there… Hire some help maybe…?"
"Hey, Welf, you busy?" Titta asked as she entered his workshop.
"Not really, why?"
"I know you have your reasons, but… do you ever plan on going back to the Familia?"
Welf sighed heavily. "This again?"
"Yes," she responded bluntly.
"I told you. Even if Lady Hephaestus doesn't say anything, everyone around me hates me. And the ones who don't pester me constantly about making those accursed things for them."
"Tsubaki," she stated flatly.
He twitched an eyebrow in annoyance. "… The less said about her the better."
Titta frowned in disappointment.
"I swear, all that woman does when I'm around her is tease me. It's annoying."
Titta sighed quietly. "Can discern how to make a firearm in a few minutes but can't figure out a woman…"
Welf looked up in thought for a moment, distracted. "Hm? What'd ya say? Didn't hear you."
She just shook her head. "It's nothing. So, do you plan on going to the Dungeon soon?"
He nodded affirmatively. "Eventually, yeah. But with where I want to go I need some help."
"And you can't ask Tsubaki or Hephaestus?"
"Hephaestus tries not to get too personally involved with her Followers' specific problems unless she thinks it'll help the Familia as a whole. And if Tsubaki found out what I have in mind she'd never let me the hear the end of it. I need someone outside Hephaestus Familia."
Titta raised an eyebrow in thought. "So… you want to hire mercenaries maybe?"
Welf put a hand on his chin in thought. "Maybe… I don't know if I can really trust mercs." Sighing, he muttered, "Maybe I'll see if anyone's looking to form a Party."
"Right…" Titta answered in disappointment.
"But if you find any leads on mercs that might be trustworthy, let me know."
"Big Sis is better at that…"
Smiling, he decided to change the subject. "Right. Come on, let's get something to eat."
The next morning, Welf groaned as he woke up in his bed, exceptionally tired. "Geez…" Trying to sit up, he realized he could not. "… Why can't I…?" He then took notice of a substantial weight on one side and turned to it, seeing a tall woman with wheat-colored skin and long, wild black hair, one of her deep red eyes covered by a black eyepatch lying in the bed next to him.
For a moment, he could not believe what he was seeing, until the woman grinned playfully.
"Yo."
In the home's kitchen, Elin and Titta prepared a meal when Elin looked around the counter and then saw what she needed. "Hey, can you pass me the coriander?"
"Su –" Titta began to answer, only for both of them to hear a high-pitched scream from Welf.
They both ran into his room and saw him on the edge of the bed, pale-faced and pointing at the dark-skinned woman, who was not wearing any clothing to hide her curvy form.
"Wh – What the hell are you doing here Tsubaki!?" Welf exclaimed.
Tsubaki came back with a playful smirk. "Aw… not happy to see me Welf?"
He pointed to her, blushing, and shouted, "What the hell do you want? And why are you naked?!"
"Just came to check up and see how you were doing last night. And you really have to ask after last night big guy?"
"The hell are you talking about?!"
She retorted with a pout as she crawled towards him. "Whaaat? Don't tell me you don't remember last night."
Welf's face nearly matched his hair as he slinked away from her. "R – Remember?! What the hell is there to remember?! I got done working on a new weapon and went to bed!"
Titta walked into the room, her patience running low.
"Aw… but it was so fun…" Tsubaki continued.
"Stop messing with me!" Welf screamed, his voice cracking.
Tsubaki snickered at his reaction. "Huh, that's the same thing you said last night."
Her fun was interrupted when Titta smacked her across the head with a ladle.
"Ow!"
"That's enough taunting. Please get dressed Miss Tsubaki."
"Fiiine…" she grumbled.
Welf took a few breaths to level his heartrate from the situation.
Titta glanced to the side and noted, "I will admit, Welf's embarrassed face is kinda cute."
"Yeah…" Elin mumbled quietly.
Tsubaki looked at the girls with excitement. "Right!?"
Welf almost immediately got out of bed and left the room briskly.
"W – Welf! Wait up!" Titta called out as she followed him.
Later that day, Tsubaki, now dressed in a white and pink sleeveless top and red hakama, walked into Welf's workshop at the back of the house. "Yo."
Welf diligently ignored her as he worked.
Tsubaki pouted in disappointment. "C'mon kiddo."
Welf sighed in irritation and looked up from his work. "Unless you have a reason to be here, go."
"I do," she argued, lightly knocking him on the head, "if you'd stop pouting long enough to listen."
"Then tell it instead of messing with me. I have things to do today."
"Hephaestus sent me to check on you."
Welf glowered at her answer. "Well you can tell her I still won't do it."
She groaned in frustration, scratching her head. "Geez… you're hard-headed." She was momentarily distracted when she saw the disassembled firearms on his bench. "Hm? What's up with this?" She looked the various pieces over, picking up one of the bullets. "These are guns, aren't they?"
'Dammit…' Welf growled to himself, deciding trying to avoid the topic would not help. "Yes, they are."
"How'd you get them?"
"None of your business," he answered bluntly.
Titta then interjected, "I picked them up after some soldiers got on Ms. Cassandra's bad side."
"T – Titta!"
Tsubaki nodded in understanding. "Oohh, that little mess. Makes sense. Planning to become a gunsmith then?"
Welf clicked his tongue and turned away from her silently.
She sighed with a shrug. "Look, I don't care if you are. But you're never going to get anywhere with Hephaestus if you stick to making the same old stuff that already exists."
"I am not making them," Welf answered bluntly.
"That's fine. You gotta ask yourself why though." He attention was carried away when she noticed some of the wooden pieces from the two weapons. "Huh?" She then picked up the rifle's stock and examined it. "This is some pretty good woodwork."
"Yeah…" he commented dryly.
"I'm guessing you don't know much about woodwork, do you?"
"I know enough," he answered harshly. "I just can't get any good materials."
Tsubaki blinked in confusion before remembering. "Oh yeah, you're a soloer. You wouldn't do well on Floor Twelve like you are."
Welf twitched an eyebrow at her comment, less than thrilled by the veiled insult. "Thanks for stating the obvious."
"You're welcome," she replied with a cheeky smile.
"So what do you suggest instead? Far as I know, most of the trees around Orario aren't that great. And no one will Party with me."
"That so?" she asked pointedly.
"Yes," he answered bluntly.
The woman frowned slightly.
"… What now?"
"No one at all?"
"No one I've tried asking. Eventually got turned down so many times I stopped trying."
"That is concerning…"
"Well you shouldn't be surprised. It's the same reason nobody will sell my shit."
Tsubaki narrowed her eye suspiciously. "They still don't?"
"What do you mean still? They never stopped doing that crap."
"… Need to inform Lady Hephaestus of this…"
"Go ahead. It's not gonna stop them."
"Well, I'll make you a deal."
"What?" he asked suspiciously.
"You've given me some valuable information, whether you realize it or not. So in return, I'll give you some. A new deity just appeared on the outskirts of Orario, with a human in tow. If you head to the Guild building now, you may be able to recruit them before they have a chance to be swayed by those mongrels."
"Right…"
"See ya," she waved as she left.
Welf frowned uncertainly after she was gone and then stood from his stool.
"Do you believe her?" Elin asked as she and Welf made their way to the Guild building.
All he could do was shrug. "I don't know. But it's not like I've got any better options."
"I could always find some mercenaries for you."
"I would appreciate that. But the potential lead she gave me is time sensitive. Tsubaki is a pain in the ass, not bad. So it's not going to be a trap or something like that. At worst it'll be a wild goose chase."
"Right…"
As they walked in, Welf looked around curiously. "Well, we're here. Now to see if there's actually anyone here matching what she said."
The bustle of the normal crowds of the Guild were silenced by the sound of a loud crash, followed by the voice of an extremely upset woman.
"You've got to be kidding! You mean we can't just go hunting as we please!?"
Approaching the situation, Welf saw two people at one of the reception desks talking to the brown-haired elf he had seen before, Eina.
The first was a petite, almost frail-looking girl with blonde hair and violet eyes, wearing a simple white dress that did little to hide her curvy figure.
The one causing all the commotion, however, was the person with her. A tall, voluptuous woman with jet black hair that reached her round ass, practically glowing red eyes, and a chest that threatened to burst out of her black, sleeveless top, combined with a white coat hung over her shoulders, and a simple white and blue skirt.
Eina just sighed and answered the woman calmly. "I'm sorry, but you can't enter the Dungeon without being part of a Familia or by paying the entry fee."
"Seriously!?" The black-haired woman hissed and then turned to the blonde. "Hey, blondie! Got any cash on you?!"
"Wh – Why would I…?" she asked timidly.
"You're the one who dragged me here!"
Welf decided to intervene before things got too violent. "Is something the matter here?"
Luna, standing behind the counter next to Eina, smiled as Welf approached. "Welf! It's good to see you!"
The black-haired woman looked at Welf annoyed. "Who the hell are you?"
"Welf Crozzo," he introduced bluntly. "An Adventurer here. And someone getting very annoyed by your shouting." He then turned to the blonde standing timidly next to her. 'That girl… she has to be a goddess… Wait…'
Looking at him, the blonde tilted her head in thought. "Is something wrong?"
"… Ah, no. It's nothing. You must be a new goddess around here."
That declaration seemed to startle the blonde who looked around franticly. "Sh – Shush, not so loud…!"
Welf just raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Why?"
"Yeah," the black-haired woman added.
"It's not like gods are a rarity in this world. Or did you not know that before coming here?"
The blonde stared silently for several seconds as she tried to process his statement. "… E – Eh?"
Luna, deciding to intervene on the… tense situation, suggested a change of venue. "… Erm, why don't we… move this to the back room?"
Welf then turned around and noticed the normally bustling Guild hall still as death with every all staring at the same general spot. "Right…"
Welf sighed as he sat on a sofa in one of the Guild's private rooms along with Elin, Luna, Eina, the black-haired woman, and the blonde goddess, who was repeatedly bowing and apologizing to Eina and Luna for the woman's actions, said woman just glaring at her.
"Alright, so who the hell are you two?" Welf questioned.
Ceasing her constant apologies, the blonde goddess started. "I'm Ristarte. A goddess, as you guessed."
Welf shrugged before nodding. "It wasn't that hard to figure out. But yeah, I figured. And you?"
The black-haired woman crossed her legs indignantly. "Momoyo Kawakami. A person this idiot goddess dragged out of nowhere to come save this world."
"Kawakami? You don't look like a goddess," Welf remarked.
Momoyo twitched an eyebrow and retorted, "I'm not. It's just my last name."
"Ah. Odd last name for a beautiful warrior."
"It's an old, proud name. Crozzo sounds like some kind of cheese."
Welf huffed in derision. "It's what I'm born with. A cursed name better off gone."
"Welf…" Elin muttered sadly.
Eina then spoke up, catching something Momoyo had said. "Hold on, you said you're here to save this world. From what?"
Momoyo just shrugged. "Ask blondie, not me. She didn't give me much of a choice. She said something about a Demon King, that's all I know."
"Demon King?" Welf and the others asked in unison.
"I have a name you know," Ristarte remarked to the black-haired woman with annoyance.
She just put her arms behind her head dismissively. "And I was busy doing something. We both lose."
Sighing, Ristarte turned to Welf and the others. "Okay, I'll do my best to keep it simple."
And there goes the first chapter! Hopefully that was enjoyable, I know I had fun making it. If you enjoyed it, be sure to let me know with a review. If you were confused, uncertain, or have questions on anything, leave a review with your concerns and I will address them in the first reviewer response. If you did not like it, feel free to review it, though I would appreciate more than just saying how it is bad. That said, until next time, bye-bye!