(A/N): Still waiting for a few more ladies for the roster. But I do have enough of a cast to really get this thing going so I'll roll with the current cast for a bit. It won't be difficult to get everyone else to come in after.

Also, I'm going to throw this out there as well. If you're a part of this story, it's even more important that you do this.

I'm going to be doing a series of polls on my author page which is going to be used to decide pairings. Part of the challenge is that I myself have absolutely no power over the pairings apart from having the luxury of excluding Yaoi and Yuri at my own discretion. Seeing as I haven't written Yaoi in my entire life (nor do I intend to) and I've tried my hand at Yuri all of twice and wasn't satisfied with the result, I'm going to do just regular pairings. These polls will go for about 4-7 days so I can get a ballpark figure of who should be with who. Every 4 days or so, check my author page to see a new poll.

Thanks again who participated and the moment I get the last of the roster sorted out, I'll update the submission rules with the whole roster that I chose.

As of now though, I'm not looking for anymore male characters.

Anyway, let's get back to it!

EDIT: Added a few details that were brought to my attention by Cyberweasel89. Take a quick look again and you'll see tiny details added to everything.

Chapter 2: Unexpected Complications

Babel, The Armor Shop

"Everything set for the trip, Akio?"

I nodded slowly.

"Everyone's all set except for Vanna who's restringing her bow downstairs," I replied.

Mira nodded slowly.

"Where's everyone else?" she asked.
"Hanna and Amie are at the entrance waiting for us and I believe Nana is getting something done for her whip; she just got a new one," I replied.

Mira nodded slowly.

"What about Takashi?" she asked.
"He went on ahead to clear out some of the stronger monsters; he didn't want to risk Amie getting caught by those because as you well know, we don't exactly have someone who can stand up to these things," I replied.

Mira raised an eyebrow.

"Did he seriously go off on his own?" asked Mira.

I laughed softly.

"He's spent most of his time going into the dungeon entirely on his own or with Fang...I have faith in him," I said.
"You've come a long way; trusting him haven't you?" she asked.

I nodded.

"He's proven time and time again that he's a faithful partner and he will never risk the safety of others, preferring to take on the danger himself," I explained.

Mira shrugged.

"He's really nice to everyone...but he's distant most times," she said.
"He doesn't like to share his past...he's only actually told Hestia about it so he sort of has trust issues," I replied.

She nodded slowly.

"But is he strong enough to make it that far on his own?" she asked.

I laughed nervously.

"Well...after hearing about everyone's stats last night..." I began.

The Previous Night- Hestia's Church

"Your stats are actually great for a level 1 Hanna," said Hestia.

Hanna replaced her shirt.

"Your agility stat is progressing nicely, which explains why you can move so fast.," she said.

Hestia looked at Amie and smiled.

"You've been practicing well Amie; your magic stat is growing steadily so keep up with the practice!" cheered Hestia.

Amie smiled brightly and even I couldn't help but feel a smile creep onto my face. I had begun to think that she was falling behind everyone due to her lack of physical fitness like the others but Hestia clearly believed that she could handle herself so who was I to not believe in the words of my goddess. Amie got off of the bed as Hestia looked to Takashi.

"You're next big guy," she said.

He looked back from the window he was looking out of and nodded. He approached the bed and removed his shirt, revealing a remarkably toned body and the same large tattoo that formed on all our backs. A bright blue aura enveloped his tattoo as Hestia began to examine it.

"What are his stats like?" asked Amie.

Hestia gasped.

"...He's grown so much," said Hestia.

Takashi didn't respond at all to what she said.

"...Your dexterity and agility are nearly 1.5 times what they were before and you've made a lot of progress with your magic stat as well," she explained.

Takashi nodded slowly.

"Considering that you haven't checked on my stats in nearly a month, it doesn't surprise me," replied Takashi.
"You're still progressing so fast..." she said.

Hestia suddenly made a sound between an excited gasp and a squeal.

"Now you can actually go for that grimoire from Eliss's shop!" she said.
"...My magic progressed to B rank?" he asked in disbelief.

Hestia giggled excitedly.

"Eliss promised that she would give you a grimoire once you reached B and you finally did it!" she cheered.

My mind jolted from her words.

"Wait...Eliss as in Eliss Allons? One of the very few people in Orario who can actually create grimoires?" I asked in shock.

Hestia nodded.

"Takashi's done a lot of work for her, not to mention that he saved her life a few months ago when she was ambushed by bandits," replied Hestia.

I shook my head.

"How exactly does a ragtag group of bandits defeat a powerful mage like Eliss?" I asked.
"Because they aren't bandits...they're deserters with the blessing of Ares who are abusing their powers," replied Takashi.

Takashi replaced his shirt before turning to us.

"I doubt Ares himself is aware of their actions but these attacks have become frequent...so now it's more important than ever for us to stay together," explained Takashi.

He looked at Amie and Hanna.

"You two have come a long way these past two weeks, training harder than many adventurers that I've met throughout my lifetime and I have to say that I'm impressed...you're both going to be famous before long," he said with a pleasant smile.

He then looked to me.

"Akio...you've been a friend and partner to me for nearly two years and you've also come a long way; you used to be probably the most anti-social person I've met...now you're here taking care of these girls," he said.

I looked away, feeling a faint blush come to my cheeks.

"Shut up Takashi," I said.

He laughed softly.

"I'm proud of you my friend," he said.

Much to my surprise, he held out a hand to me. Not wanting to disappoint him, as well as everyone else in the room, I shook it firmly.

"Tomorrow's trip will not be easy...so I'm heading out tonight to gather extra supplies and brew some extra potions in case things go sour," he said.

He put his backpack, as well as his bow on his back and climbed onto the windowsill.

"I've already been to that floor and I already took a few precautionary steps but I'm not taking any chances," he said.

I leaned off the wall.

"So what do we do?" I asked.
"Focus on getting to the exit; you already know where it is with that map we got earlier," he replied.

He sighed.

"I hope things don't go wrong tomorrow...but the Dungeon really has a way of rubbing salt in your wounds," said Hestia.
"I'll see you all tomorrow...if I don't arrive by 9 AM tomorrow morning, go in without me and I'll catch up...stay together all of you, no matter what," he said.

He jumped out the window.

"Is he always so distant?" sighed Amie.

Hestia shook her head.

"He knows that this isn't exactly the most prepared party for this trip so he just wanted everyone to be safe," she replied.
"Is he really that sure of himself? That he can actually catch up to all of us on his own?" I asked.

Hestia sighed deeply but smiled.

"Even though it does come off as cockiness at times...he really has gotten far into that place without anyone's help so I doubt he would make a statement like that if he couldn't follow through," said Hestia.

Hanna shook her head.

"I still don't get why he treats us as if we're helpless," she said.
"He knows you all are not helpless but without someone to truly be there to take a blow for any of you, in addition to you and Amie being level 1...can you really expect him to have the utmost confidence?" replied Hestia.

Amie put a hand to her chin.

"But what makes him such a good hunter? I don't understand how he's able to do the things he does," she asked.

Hestia smiled.

"It stems from his skills as well as the training he puts himself through," she explained.

She then reached into a table and pulled out a small scroll.

"I kept a record of his growth since the day he joined me...and it's incredible for someone who doesn't have a way to really amplify his growth rate," she said.

I approached them as she began to explain precisely what Takashi does whenever he wasn't home taking care of her.

Takashi is a hunter and it's his profession to hunt dangerous animals whenever he wasn't in the dungeon. That would explain how he's always so sharp whenever he ventured into there in addition to how his stats keep increasing. Once he recovered from his injuries when he first met Hestia, he routinely entered the dungeon every single day for the first year and a half he was with her, only stopping to take care of hunting contracts around the time when I joined. In these trips, Takashi trained himself by routinely fighting monsters stronger than him, outwitting them with his superior speed and tactics.

Hestia even noted that he killed monsters such as War Shadows and Killer Ants even as a level 1 due to how smart he could be in battle, no doubt due to all the experience he had surviving as a child. Even though he was a great fighter at level 1, he didn't always return unscathed from a dungeon trip and there were times Hestia had to care for his injuries but the more he went into the dungeon, the better he got at fighting on his own.

What really added to his expertise is what happened when he became Level 2, which happened a year and six months after he joined her. He developed a great degree of skill in Alchemy after having studied herbs a lot during his travels. This enabled him to make potions to sustain himself as well as to create poisons which helped him fight the monsters even more effectively. He continued to grow stronger due to the tremendous amount of training he puts himself through in addition to his instinct to protect other adventurers; one of the reasons he was so well known is because he has saved quite a few people from certain death. These feats earned him one of his nicknames "Hero Of The Forest".

I truly began to question how he was able to do these seemingly impossible feats...until Hestia informed us of his skills.

He was already an excellent shot with a bow thanks to his high dexterity, routinely making extremely difficult shots with his enhanced elven senses enabling him to shoot even more accurately. He also developed his agility stat quickly due to his need to flee from monsters should they close the distance in addition to having to dodge attacks. He also made use of magic, using his spell called Greensprout to rapidly grow plants from the Earth. He showed just how well these could work together to allow him to take down stronger monsters. His usual tactic was to ensnare the monster with the roots of trees before unleashing a relentless hail of arrows. Sometimes, he would even have the roots do all the work for him as they could sometimes crush the enemy he chants it upon with the sheer force.

However, I really begun to understand how he was so effective; he developed two major skills that really allowed him to maintain his role as an expert marksman.

When he became level 1, he developed a skill called Hawk-Eye, which allowed him to enter a state of focus which he describes as "seeing the world in slow motion" and allowed him to even more accurately fire his bow. He likely developed this from his initial desire to be a master of the bow as well as to never miss a shot. He was however an extremely rare case of adventurer who developed two skills at his first level in comparison to the usual one. This most likely stemmed from his strong desire to protect the innocent as well as nature itself; it was what helped him survive for so long. He developed Animal Whispering, which allowed him to decipher the brainwaves of animals into his own dialect and vice versa. This skill of his was what allowed him to truly tame Fang, who is now his closest bond and his hunting partner. When he reached level 2, he developed his signature skill called Swift, which temporarily allows him to move so quickly, the human eye cannot see him. This however had the drawback of tremendously straining his body which is why he only uses it when he's fresh or if he's desperate.

He really exemplified what hard work can do...but he was by no means untouchable or invincible. He's been injured a fair number of times and he wasn't the best at hand to hand combat. In addition to that, he definitely lacked the ability to take a solid hit.

"That's...impressive," I said.
"Tomorrow...I won't be able to go with you all so please...just watch out for him?" she asked.

I nodded confidently.

"He's a member of our familia and I know how much he means to you...I'll keep an eye on him always," said Amie.

Hestia smiled brightly.

"I know he'll start to see you all as family soon...just give him some time to adjust," she said.

Present Time- Babel, The Dungeon's Entrance

"Everybody ready to go?"

I looked around to see the entire group, standing at attention. I had no idea why I suddenly became the de facto leader of the group but I guess it works right?

"Takashi already went ahead of us to clear out some of the monsters...now remember that while you're in this place, you stay together with the party and don't fall behind, if you need to take a break to rest, let everyone know so we can adjust our pace accordingly," I said.

Everyone nodded in unison.

"Akio...how exactly are we going to deal with them?" asked Vanna.

I put a hand to my chin.

"The way I see it...we probably won't encounter any kind of spellcaster so you'll stay further back Amie," I said.

She nodded.

"Vanna, since you're the best shot that we have and you're rather good at tracking, you take point," I continued.

She nodded as I turned to Hanna.

"You're really good at hitting and running...but because we don't exactly have anyone who can really take a hit, you're going to have to distract them," I said.

She nodded slowly, understanding that she was probably the most capable of dodging attacks than the lot of us. I then looked at Mira and smiled.

"Just be yourself Mira," I said with a chuckle.

She happily made a sound between a meow and a cheer, causing me to roll my eyes; always happy even when it came to a life-threatening situation. I then felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't forget about me,"

Nana laughed softly as she brandished her brand new whip. I closed my eyes and smiled.

"We're going to make it to Rivira today and if we do, we can stay there for a little while and get ourselves in a good position before we head back home...but we must work together; those monsters are no joke," I continued.

A unified cheer followed my words.

"Let's get going then,"

...

Several Hours Later- The 17th Floor

"Akio?"

I turned around to see Mira, who was panting slightly.

"I'm not used this kind of walking...could we take a quick break so I can catch my breath?" she asked.

I nodded with a smile as I turned to everyone.

"Five minute break!" I shouted.

The others stopped, sitting on either the ground or on rocks as I looked at Mira, who seemed very exhausted.

"Probably should've used the potions instead of asking you to heal me..." I sighed.

Mira nodded, still panting heavily.

"I overestimated myself and got a little carried away with all the casting I was doing...besides, the potions are better than the kind of healing magic I know so it's probably better to save those," she replied.

I reached into my bag and handed her a small bottle.

"Drink this; you'll feel a lot better," I said.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Just before we went into Babel, Hestia told me to take some of these with me; Takashi brewed these potions himself," I replied.

Mira took the bottle from me and drank it wordlessly. It didn't take long for her to light up, much more energized than before.

"You definitely need to work on your stamina a little more if you're going to come this far down," I said.
"Thank you Akio," she said with a smile.

She handed the bottle to me and I placed it in my bag. I then turned to everyone but there was still no sign of Takashi.

"He said he would meet us here once he scouted ahead...where is he?"

"INCOMING!" screamed Vanna.

I turned and gasped as I saw a very large pair of minotaurs coming towards us.

"Wait...what are minotaurs doing here...we aren't supposed to see them for at least another two floors..."

I cursed loudly.

"Everyone fall back!" I shouted.

Everyone regrouped as we backed away from the minotaurs, who seemed hellbent on killing us all.

"What the hell are minotaurs doing on this floor?!" cried Mira.
"I have no idea...but we can't turn back now; the rest of the monsters have probably appeared again," I said.

I looked to Vanna and then to Mira as I began to formulate a strategy. Amie stood in the back...but Hanna held her daggers tightly, eyeing the minotaurs.

"Focus them down one at a time!" I ordered.
"Power Of Ice! Unleash thy frozen wrath! ICEBOLT!"

A decently sized bolt of frost energy shot from Vanna's hand and struck one of the minotaurs in the leg, freezing part of it as she loaded an arrow.

"Let's do it!" shouted Hanna.

I saw electricity begin to crackle from her daggers.

"Electrify my enemy...grant my blades the edge they need..."

Her daggers quickly came to life with electricity crackling loudly along the blades. She took a breath and dashed forward at quite a speed. I then turned to Mira.

"Think you and I can keep one distracted?" I asked.

She smiled and nodded. I drew my sword, opened the satchel that contained my knives and turned to the minotaur that everyone was not focusing on.

"Don't forget about me!"

Nana brandished her whip and giggled excitedly.

"I've been waiting for some real action all day long," said Nana.
"Nana, Mira and I will hold the second one, all of you take that other one down!" I ordered.
"YES SIR!" they shouted.

Meanwhile- Somewhere On The 12th Floor

"I didn't anticipate so many minotaurs to be here...the dungeon's being particularly hard on everyone today..."

I turned to Fang, who looked at me curiously.

"You said you found a scent of an adventurer somewhere in this floor?"
"Yes...I haven't lost the scent but I can smell our friends over in the other direction...the lone scent however has a pair of minotaurs with it so whoever it is, she faces them alone,"

I cursed loudly.

"How far do you think she is?"
"We can get there quickly if we leave now...but I'm not sure how the others are doing,"

I took a breath.

"Without us, there's no way that person is going to survive on their own...but I don't feel safe letting the others handle so many minotaurs so go back and help them,"
"What about you master?"
"Don't worry about me; get them to Rivira, I'll join you as soon as I get the person out of here,"

Fang reluctantly turned her back.

"Be careful master...this is further than we've ever been before on our own and even though we've been through here thanks to the party that escorted us the last time...I still don't know all of the tricks it holds up its sleeve,"
"You know I'll be careful...now go,"

She nodded and sped towards the others.

I had no idea how I was so foolish to let myself get cornered by those minotaurs but I managed to escape unscathed. I should consider myself lucky; a group of minotaurs were enemies that even higher echelon adventurers had problems with Knowing that I no longer had Fang to rely on, I leaped through the trees, using my senses to follow the trail the person left behind. Finally, I finally caught up began to slow down and stalked into the bushes as we found the person.

She...was beautiful. She was clearly an elf as I could see her ears. She had long, snow white hair, crystal white eyes and a skin tone just a few shades shy of salmon. She wore a white sundress, covered by a crimson cloak. The dress exposed a moderate amount of skin...due mostly to the tears on it. She stood at about 5' 6" and had a slender, yet defined figure.

"How is she fending off two minotaurs on her own...wait..."

The familiar scent of blood filled the air and I looked closer to see that her left arm was bleeding and she was panting heavily from exhaustion.

"...She's not going to last much longer..."

I looked in my satchel.

"I don't have a lot of poison to work with...time to see if it works as it's supposed to,"

I jumped into a tree and removed three arrows from my quiver. I then removed a bottle of anesthetic poison from my bag and dipped as many arrows as I could into it. Once I finished, I closed my eyes and began to search for the presence of roots. I could feel all of the trees connected the the Earth as I felt around for any roots that might be near to them. Much to my relief, there were lots of roots near the minotaurs.

I held my hand towards the minotaurs and chanted softly.

"ENSNARE AND CONSTRICT! GREENSPROUT!"

Large roots and vines shot from the Earth and ensnared both of the minotaurs. The moment the vines were secure, I took my chance and jumped from the tree.

"Focus...don't miss...a life depends on my accuracy,"

using my time in the air to carefully aim the three arrows I drew just before I leaped. I shot them and successfully managed to hit both of the minotaurs with two arrows hitting the one on the left and one on the right. Once I landed, I sprinted as fast as my legs could carry me, readying a second three arrow volley and firing it as soon as I had the balance to do so. Another successful hit, this time increasing the number in the left one to five. I could see the poison taking effect as the minotaur began to slow down dramatically.

"Glad I learned how to make this stuff while I was hunting for those lions..."

I then removed another three arrows as I drew near to the elf. Suddenly, least injured minotaur broke free of the vines and lashed out with its club. I slid under the swing and fired the arrows, striking it in the stomach and causing it to howl in pain. The poison finally began to show as its swings became slower and slower. I instantly readied another volley but I had to roll out of the way of yet another incoming swing.

Unfortunately for me, I didn't expect such a large amount of force from the club hitting the floor and the shockwave sent me flying a short distance. I managed to recover as I readied my bow again but the minotaur had somehow closed the distance between us and swung its club at me. I managed to dodge the blow but the following punch from the minotaur was completely unavoidable from my position...and the impact sent me flying into the air, causing me to drop my arrows and land roughly on my left arm. I hissed loudly in pain as I struggled to my feet only to see it about to swing again...

~ o ~

"THROW MY ENEMIES WITH THE TRUE FORCE OF NATURE! WHIRLWIND!"

My shout caused a huge gust of wind to blow the minotaur clean off of its feet. As I felt the last of my stamina drain away...I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Can you walk?"

I looked up to see that the elf had somehow made it beside me. He had also shot the minotaur with three more arrows that for some reason, cause it to slow down drastically. I shook my head, still panting very heavily.

"Hold on as tight as you can," he said.

He picked me up onto his back and somehow, he took off at an incredible speed. Before I could process where I was, we appeared in the forest but now, the elf was panting very heavily. We had ended up by some kind of stream, where he placed me down. I looked to see that he was gripping his arm, wincing in pain.

"I really shouldn't do that when I'm injured..." he groaned.

He looked at me before removing a bottle form his satchel and handing it to me.

"Drink this, you'll feel a lot better," he said.

I reluctantly accepted the bottle and drank it. Much to my surprise, I recognized the potion's taste.

"...Elven Swiftmend?" I asked.

He smiled and nodded.

"Learned how to make it from my mother...it's a potion that's saved my life time and time again," he explained.

I could already feel sweet relief coming to my wounds as cuts began to seal themselves and the fatigue began to disappear. He reached for another bottle but before he could open the top, he collapsed to the floor, howling in agony.

"Are you okay?" I cried.

I was at his side almost instantly as he continued to groan.

"...It's a side effect of using that skill of mine when I'm hurt...I should've known better than to use it when the minotaurs hurt me earlier and now my arm is paying for it," he groaned.

I tried to reach for the bottle but much to my horror...it shattered.

"The...the potion shattered," I gasped.

He looked up and cursed loudly.

"That was the last one I had...I didn't think I'd need to take so many with me when Amie was here," he cursed.
"Amie? You have a party?" I asked.

He moved to a tree and lay against the trunk before nodding.

"My entire Familia is here...but my wolf smelled your blood and I decided to come and help you; I don't want to leave anyone in this accursed place on their own," he explained.

My eyes narrowed; he was brave enough to do this all on his own.

"Where are they now?" I asked.
"Likely on their way to Rivira...which is the next floor down from here," he groaned.

I nodded.

"...Well, as much as I appreciate your help...I don't know how we're going to get out of this," I said.

The elf looked around and spotted a cave.

"Can you walk?" he asked.

I nodded as I rose to my feet.

"Help me over there...we'll have to stay there until I recover or we'll never make it to the exit," he said.
"But...how will we were survive?" I asked.
"I've been to this floor before and I take precautions...just trust me?" he asked.

I slung his arm over my shoulder and nodded.

"What's your name?" he asked.
"Ayame," I replied.

He nodded slowly.

"Takashi Mashiro, nice to meet you,"