(A/N): Almost done rounding up the roster to be updated on the main chapter at the start of the story. Glad you guys are enjoying it all and please, do continue to give in your submissions. My resident DanMachi expert and I are having loads of fun reviewing them all and please don't be worried if you haven't appeared yet; you will in due time.
Also, I didn't realize the poll was undone. It should be up as of now.
Chapter 6: Revelation
The Following Morning- Rivira
"Is everyone ready to go?" I asked.
"Just about," replied Vanna.
I released the bar, landing on my feet as I wiped the sweat from my forehead.
"Good...now all we need to do is plan our strategy," I replied.
"Akio...I'm not sure that there is one,"
I raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
"Takashi and Ayame already went ahead to scout the area and they sent Meiryo back with a message detailing everything," she said.
I replaced my shirt and fastened my belt to my waist.
"What did the message say?" I asked.
"The boss is a Goliath...and it's being followed by at least three Lygerfangs as well as Minotaurs and for some reason, about ten Killer Ants have come to the surface and pose a serious threat," she replied.
I nodded slowly as I strapped my armor to my body securely.
"Then we'll have to deal with each threat as it comes," I said.
"...How can you be so calm about this?" asked Vanna.
"Because I believe that if we all work together, we can get this done," I replied.
She smiled slightly.
"I suppose you're right; we do have extra help this time," she said.
"If we defeat that boss today, we can go back home with enough of a haul to finally build the home we've dreamed of and more importantly, for Hestia," I said.
"I heard that Matilda and Ayame are coming back with us?" she asked.
I nodded.
"Matilda's been toying with the idea of converting to Hestia's family because she's apparently tired of Apollo's while Ayame I believe no longer has a reason to be associated with Ares...so she may convert as well," I replied.
"Our family has grown so large...it's hard to believe that not long ago, it was just you, Takashi and I," said Vanna.
I put a hand on her shoulder.
"The most important thing to me is taking care of my goddess right now and she's always dreamed of having a family...we've given her that dream and then some,"
I sheathed both my daggers as I handed Vanna her bow.
"Let's get this done and go home,"
The 17th Floor- The Entrance from Rivira
"Good, everyone's here now," I said.
I saw Takashi jump down from a tree as Fang walked forward with Ayame riding on her back.
"Any news?" asked Nana.
"The Golaith appears to be in the middle, near a large stream and is for some reason patrolling there," replied Takashi.
"Takashi and I managed to take care of most of the ants before you all arrived by three more Lygerfangs have joined the boss so now it's even more dangerous to get too close," said Ayame.
I cursed under my breath.
"We'll have to be very careful; especially since we only really have one person who can take a hit," said Mira.
Zekko stepped forward, his mace and shield on his back showing that he was the one they spoke of.
"I've fought minotaurs and Lygerfangs before but I don't know how well I'll be able to fight a group of them," he said.
"There is no I in this," replied Hanna.
Zekko closed his eyes and smiled.
"You guys really take this teamwork thing seriously don't you?" he asked.
"It's one of the virtues Hestia taught us...and all of us are friends and look out for one another and this time will be no different," replied Amie.
Takashi turned around as did Fang.
"Minotaurs are coming," he said.
I turned to Ayame.
"You and Vanna stay together on top of Fang; I have an idea for the two of you," I said.
Vanna nodded and climbed on top of Fang.
"Takashi, I'm gonna need you to keep the two of them safe," I said looking to Takashi.
He nodded confidently.
"Leave it to me," he said.
I then turned to Nana and Mira.
"You two are going to have to open up on them along with Zekko but don't get too worked up; this is a much larger group than before," I said.
Matilda stepped forward.
"I'll stay with them and make sure they're all accounted for," she said.
I nodded firmly as I turned to Hanna and Amie.
"You two come with me and stay close," I said.
"Yes sir!" they replied.
I took a deep breath as I looked to the ground.
"Now is the time we prove ourselves...now is the time...that we stand united,"
"Let's do it!" I said.
"Yes sir!"
Several Minutes Later
"Minotaurs ahead," said Takashi.
"Remember the plan...we can't afford to get the Goliath's attention until we deal with all the lackeys," said Zekko.
He brandished his shield and mace as he ran forward.
"HEY COWFACES! OVER HERE!" he shouted.
Three minotaurs turned their attention from the forest to him as they roared loudly.
"Get ready you two," said Akio.
Vanna nodded as well as Ayame. The minotaurs charged forward, each holding a large two handed axe as they continued to run at him.
"NOW!" shouted Akio.
"Heavens above, shed thy tears and send my enemies to the wind...RAINSTORM!"
A violent storm started to rain down on the battlefield. Vanna clenched her fist.
"Water become my weapon, rain become my blades...FREEZE!"
The heavy downpour of rain suddenly turned into a relentless hail of icicles. Ayame focused as much as she could to isolate the rain on the minotaurs as they were pelted over and over with razor sharp ice.
"You're up Hanna," said Akio.
She unsheathed her daggers and watched carefully for an opening.
"Takashi, you know what to do," said Akio.
He loaded an arrow into his bow and aimed carefully. Hanna approached him and placed a hand on the tip of the arrowhead.
"Stop the freezing," said Akio.
Vanna released the spell, causing the rain to become regular water again but the damage had been dealt according to plan; the minotaurs were barely able to move due to their now sliced up bodies as well as the ice that formed around them making it almost impossible for them to move.
"NOW!" shouted Akio.
"Power of electricity...wrath of lightning, rend my enemies asunder! CONDUCTION!"
Hanna heavily charged the tip of Takashi's metal arrowhead with electricity, so much so that it crackled violently. Takashi then released the arrow and managed to hit one of the minotaurs, which spread the intense current to all three due to the water from the rainstorm. All three minotaurs roared in agony as the huge electrical current ran through them.
"Let's go everyone!" shouted Akio.
Fang immediately took off into a sprint followed by Hanna.
"Takashi, keep the Lygerfangs off of them; they're bound to be coming now that they heard all of that," said Akio.
Takashi nodded as he closed his eyes. Once he reopened them, he vanished almost instantly. Akio swallowed some air.
"Ready for this?"
Mira and Nana nodded as they brandished their weapons.
"Ready as I'll ever be," said Mira.
"I have no intention of being the damsel in distress this time so let's do this," said Nana.
Akio clenched his fists.
"Stick to the plan and we'll come out on top,"
Minutes Later
"Any sign of the Goliath Meiryo?"
"It's heading this way,"
I cursed under my breath.
"We didn't expect it to be coming so quickly...Nana and the others haven't finished off the Lygerfangs," I said.
"We'll have to improvise," said Zekko.
He raised his shield as Matilda finished her healing spell.
"Back to fighting condition!" she said with a smile.
Zekko smiled and nodded.
"Glad you're here with us," he said.
Matilda grinned from ear to ear.
"Where's Takkun? He was supposed to be here by now,"
"Strange...it's not like him to be late,"
I nodded in agreement.
"Any sign of Takashi?"
"He's...not moving, I think he's with someone,"
"Did something happen?"
"Oh my...it's Fang, she's been wounded,"
I gasped audibly.
"What's wrong Ayame?" asked Matilda.
"Fang...she's down," I replied.
Matilda nodded.
"Have Meiryo guide me to her, I'll make sure she's alright," she said.
Meiryo flew down low as he guided Matilda through the trees. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew forward as Hanna arrived.
"Nana, Amie and Mira are right behind me, Vanna and Akio went ahead to scout just as planned," she said.
"Good, that means everything's on schedule apart from Fang's injury," said Zekko.
"...It was my fault," said Hanna.
Zekko put a hand on her shoulder.
"Now's not the time to worry about that; Matilda will get her back on her feet in no time but right now...we have to focus on the task at hand," he said.
Hanna slowly nodded and took a breath. Moments later, a bolt of ice flew above the trees.
"That's the signal; the Goliath is close,"
Zekko turned to all of us.
"You all know what you have to do," he said.
Hanna's face seemed to drain of color.
"You're...going to fight that thing on your own?" she asked.
"I won't be alone; I have all of you with me...just follow the plan and we'll win this thing,"
Zekko brandished his weapons and rose to his feet.
"I'll keep it busy for as long as I can; Takashi's integral in the plan and we need to buy him some time to catch up," he said.
He fearlessly ran forward.
~ o ~
This was suicide. I had to be on a whole new level of insane to be doing something like this...but I knew that I was the only one who stood a chance at fighting that thing one on one. No one in the party had the strength or endurance to trade blows with it...so I knew it had to fall to me. I had faith in all of them; Ayame is a powerful mage, Takashi is a very well known ranger, Vanna has proven herself to be an excellent archer as well as clever in the use of her ice spells, Mira was an excellent fighter with that scythe of hers and Nana was a master of her whip along with that aptitude for all things that burn.
Akio came up with most of the plan and even Amie, who didn't have a lot to offer to us...promised to be there for us. These people are ones I've grown to trust and if Ayame believes in them, I see no reason why I shouldn't either. I finally made my way out of the trees as I stared my enemy down.
"Holy shit this bastard is big..."
This monster stood at least 7 meters tall and had gray skin. It's face resembled that of an ogre and it had large horns jutting from the top of it's head. Finally, it held a huge axe and to say the least...it looked absolutely furious. It saw me and roared loudly. I swallowed hard as I held my shield up.
"Here goes..."
I charged forward, clearing the distance between us as I slammed my mace into its leg. Much to my surprise however, it didn't seem to feel the blow. It swung it's massive axe at me, forcing me to duck and roll under it. I continued to try and strike its leg but it continued to ignore my efforts. I leaped backwards as it slammed the axe into the ground, sending a tremendous shockwave in my direction. I stumbled to the ground, dropping my mace as the monster prepared to swing again.
"ENSNARE AND CONSTRICT! GREENSPROUT!"
Huge vines jutted from the ground and grabbed onto the Goliath arms.
"FLAMES OF DESTRUCTION! REDUCE MY ENEMIES TO ASH! CIRCLE OF FLAME!"
The Goliath was surrounded by a large ring of fire that quickly became a blazing inferno, setting its right leg ablaze. Nana continued forward as Vanna and Matilda reached my side.
"You okay?" asked Matilda.
I nodded and got to my feet.
"You got us the opening we needed to unload on this son of a bitch," said Matilda.
Vanna held her hand up.
"POWER OF ICE! UNLEASH THY FROZEN WRATH! ICEBOLT!"
She began to fire bolt after bolt of ice, striking the Goliath in the torso. I watched as Takashi began to rapidly fire arrows, not missing a single one of them as they each connected to the leg that was not ablaze. The Goliath fell to its knees as I noticed the sky suddenly turning darker.
"BLADES! RAIN DOWN"
A relentless swarm of daggers fired forth, sinking quickly into the Goliath's torso. Nana then began to assault the monster, striking it repeatedly all over the torso with such speed, it set it ablaze.
"NOW HANNA!" shouted Nana.
I saw her run right past everyone as she grabbed onto the her daggers and charged them with electricity. This current was intense; the daggers were crackling violently with energy as she then threw them both into the Goliath's chest.
"GO MIRA! BEFORE IT CAN REGENERATE!" shouted Akio.
I turned to see Mira smiling. Her scythe once again began to glow with shadow energy as she ran forward with a hand extended.
"CORRUPT, DECAY AND REALIZE YOUR INEVITABLE DOOM! SHADOWBOLT!"
She fired bolt after bolt of shadow energy that struck the Goliath's head repeatedly. Once she was in range, I noticed that Takashi was chanting.
"GREENSPROUT!" he yelled.
A large tree root jutted from the ground and under Mira's, giving her a boost as she leaped high into the air. She grabbed her scythe from her back and readied it to swing. A lightning bolt suddenly struck the Goliath, indicating that Ayame must've manipulated the storm to do so. Every single dagger in its torso lit up with electricity and I couldn't imagine how many volts of current was currently running through its body. Mira landed a devastating slash across its chest and as soon as she landed, she turned around and slashed its leg several times until it fell to its knees. I knew that Mira had the power to stop regeneration; it was one of her most useful skills and the Goliath was well known as one of the monsters that abused its ability to heal itself. Mira slashed the leg so viciously, she actually lopped it clean off, spraying blood all over the place as the Goliath fell to the floor.
"THE CRYSTAL IS IN ITS CHEST! FINISH IT NOW!" shouted Mira.
I nodded as I picked up my mace and leaped onto its back. I began to viciously strike its back, looking for the crystal beneath its hide. The flames had softened the skin of the Goliath as I noticed that I was breaking through it a lot more easily with my blows than when this battle first begun. Finally, I saw a glint of the crystal. I motioned for Hanna to get on top of the body and she quickly joined me, easily bounding over Nana's flaming circle. She raised her daggers and once again, charged them with electricity with her previous chant before stabbing it hard. The Goliath suddenly became motionless and within seconds, it disappeared in a puff of black smoke. The crystal shattered into three pieces and three drop items suddenly appeared: one of its horns, one of its claws and finally, one of its teeth. I sighed in relief as everyone began to cheer.
We had done it...we had slain the boss of the 17th floor.
Later That Evening- The Hostess Of Fertility, Orario
"You...you all actually managed to..." gasped Hestia.
Akio smiled at her and nodded excitedly.
"Yes...we did," he said.
Hestia began to shed tears of joy as she looked at her familia, who had gathered around the table she was sitting at.
"I'm...so proud of you, all of you," she said.
"We couldn't have done it without these three," said Nana.
She pointed to Ayame, Zekko and Matilda, who were sitting at the opposite end of the table. Hestia once again, grinned from ear to ear.
"I heard you were still in Rivira Mattie...I didn't think you would've been there and I have to thank you for saving Takashi's life," she said.
Matilda grinned and grabbed Takashi in a bosom filled bearhug.
"I would never let Takkun die! Not when he's done so much for me!" she replied.
Takashi rolled his eyes and sighed. Hestia then looked at Zekko and Ayame.
"So I take it that you two are going back to your familias?" she asked.
"Actually...I was hoping you would allow me to convert to yours," said Zekko.
Hestia raised an eyebrow.
"You'd want to leave your current familia?"
"Ayame and I are in the same boat; our familia didn't send any kind of help back for us when our party got slaughtered by those monsters and honestly...Ares's familia isn't all it's cracked up to be," replied Zekko.
Ayame nodded slowly in agreement. Matilda released Takashi and adjusted her glasses.
"I want to convert as well because Apollo's familia is fucking boring," she snapped.
Hestia laughed softly.
"I didn't think the familia would grow so quickly," she said.
"Did any others join?" asked Takashi.
Hestia nodded before looking back and waving. Much to everyone's surprise, a beautiful woman approached the table as well as a man who donned heavy plate armor.
"These two converted from Demeter's familia, saying that they wanted to become adventurers instead of simple farmers," she explained.
Vanna raised an eyebrow.
"That man doesn't look like much of a farmer and she looked like she could blow up the entire building with a single spell," she said.
Hestia shook her head.
"Demeter asked me to take them into the familia; she knew that their place was no longer with her," she explained.
Takashi nodded as he turned to the exit.
"I'll have a word with the administration about our new home," he said.
He left the tavern with Fang in tow.
"So? Introduce yourselves then?" said Mira.
The woman blushed lightly as she looked to everyone.
"My name is Relia Lapis," she said.
Akio couldn't help but stare at her and even Zekko couldn't deny that she really was quite the looker. She had long golden hair that was tied in a ponytail and emerald eyes. She too was an elf, standing at 5' 7" and didn't appear to be more than about 100lbs. She had quite the body, though not quite as curvy and busty as Matilda who continued to hold the record for both. On her back was a staff with a crescent moon at the tip of it. She was covered with crimson mage robes, indicating her focus on the magical arts as an adventurer.
"Welcome to the family," said Nana with a wink.
The man then stepped up.
"My name is Archon Oe," he said.
He was practically the polar opposite of Relia. Standing at 5' 9" and having quite a muscular build. He donned heavy plate armor and had a rather ornate looking longsword as well as a shield on his back. He was a human male, with a skin tone just a few shades short of tan and had short spiky hair.
"Good to have you on board with us Archon," said Akio.
He smiled and bowed respectfully. Hestia then turned to the Ayame and held out a hand.
"Do you want to convert as well?" she asked.
Ayame's eyes narrowed as she shyly approached her before taking her hand.
"Yes," she replied.
Later That Night- Hestia's Church
"What did administration say?" asked Nana.
"They said we can move in tomorrow; I paid off the last of the Valis that we need to acquire the house," I replied.
Nana smiled and grabbed me in a headlock.
"You're such a good boy Takashi," she teased.
I sighed as I broke free of her grasp.
"It's like everyone likes to grab hold of me...why can't you all grab Zekko or Akio instead?" I asked.
"Because you're a lot more fun to tease," said Nana with a wink.
I shook my head as I turned back to my desk.
"Did everyone settle in well?" I asked.
"Conversions were all done before you came back and we already worked out who's gonna sleep where," replied Nana.
I nodded slowly as I let out a deep breath.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Just exhausted after everything we've been through," I replied.
She placed a hand on my shoulder.
"You've earned a break...you almost died and you still ended up saving a lot of us," she said.
I nodded as I rose from my desk.
"I guess the work can wait till morning," he said.
Nana laughed softly.
"You work way too hard for your own good sometimes,"
"...Guess I could use some time to myself,"
I doused the lantern light as I walked over to my bed and sat on it, giving Fang a pat on the head.
"Tomorrow, I was hoping we could talk more about that idea I had," said Nana.
"You mean the shop we were planning to open?" I asked.
She nodded with a smile.
"I initially just wanted to have a source of income to support everyone which would allow us to not have to go into the dungeon as often...but now I think I want to erect it in Hestia's honor," she said.
I nodded slowly.
"We'll go see the administration tomorrow about it...and there's the matter of getting the rest of the funding to actually get it built," I said.
"Yeah...that's true; I don't know exactly how much it's going to take but I really want to do this," she said.
I nodded.
"We'll see to it...now let me sleep," I said rolling my eyes.
Nana snickered.
"So you can dream about Ayame?" she teased.
I shook my head.
"She's a friend and nothing more," I replied.
"You and I both know that isn't true; I can read you like a book Mr. Lone Wolf," she said.
I pushed her out of my room and closed the door before letting out a deep breath.
"I don't have time for feelings..."
Fang suddenly raised her head.
"Master...I think I just picked up a scent,"
"What kind of scent?"
"...It smells like your mother,"
My eyes widened.
"Can you follow it?"
"It's faint...but I can follow it,"
I put my bow onto my back and drew my cloak over my head as well as my mask over my mouth.
"Lead the way,"
...
"How soon until the slaves arrive to the stronghold?"
"They left out around thirteen hours ago so I would say they should've arrived by now,"
The two men continued to the inn.
"How many were there?"
"About twenty of them, about half of them are elf women,"
One of the men smiled.
"Elves are so popular with our clients...they pay a lot of money to have them in their household,"
"Probably because they're typically so beautiful,"
"Sexy, don't forget sexy,"
The sound of wood creaking alerted the men as they looked around nervously.
"What the hell was that..."
"We'd better get back to the inn quickly,"
A hooded figure suddenly appeared as they turned back around.
"Who the fuck's this guy?"
"Who cares...kill him,"
The man on the left was met with an arrow to his leg, causing him to scream in pain. The figure moved at great speed and swiftly landed a punch to the screaming man, silencing him and knocking him out cold. The figure then removed another arrow, this time from his cloak. The remaining slave trader charged at him, sword unsheathed. The figure however easily dodged him before stabbing the arrow into his arm and landing a swift kick to his stomach. The man stumbled into a wall and howled in agony from the arrow being wedged in his arm. He tried to get up but the figure had already reached him, holding him down with his foot.
"That arrow was coated with the venom of the Orarian Wandering Scorpion, making your limbs completely useless once the venom takes effect,"
He then pulled out a dart and then stabbed it into the man's leg.
"That dart will ensure that you can't lie to me,"
He crouched down.
"Now tell me everything you know about the trade you made recently, and tell me if this woman was amongst their ranks,"
He held up a picture of a beautiful elf with dark brown hair.
"...She was with them and they left thirteen hours ago to a stronghold in the south under the rule of Arkuno Zandrich," said the man.
"Keep going,"
"This particular batch of slaves is going to the mainland three weeks from now and they will spend two weeks at that stronghold before they leave never to return,"
The hooded figure closed his eyes, trying his best to quell the building rage within him.
"One more question...do you know anything of the Aledrias?" he asked.
"Halor Aledria is the one who ordered these slaves captured and rounded up...but Mr. Zandrich did not like how powerful Halor was getting so he had him killed along with his wife and child,"
The figure rose to his feet as he picked up the man's dagger and threw it at a door.
"Consider yourself lucky...I decided not to kill you today,"
The figure disappeared into the night.