A/N
Okaaaaay... that first chapter did waaaaay better than I thought it would. I was pleasantly surprised to see so many people enjoy it, but at least I know I'm on the right track. Before the chapter starts, I'm gonna acknowledge some reviews left last chapter and there were more than a few of them.
RegulusCestus- Happy to know I did good. Yeah, I agree Bell not chasing Ais means he'll see more of Lefiya's good side. Filvis is on the way so hope you like what's to come.
A guy who likes danmachi- Glad you liked it. I agree, we could always use more BellxLefiya. Filvis also needs more happy endings.
NateTC- Glad you liked the first chapter, so here's the second!
Ventanus- I'll be real. I never expected to see you of all people here. I guess I should have considering the story you're working on. Glad you enjoyed it and here's the next one for you.
angelofdarkness2442- Bell's going to get his moment soon. Don't worry, he's got the perfect orange simp elf waifu to help him along the way.
Guipa- Look no further as the update is here with all the Bell and Lefiya you were hopefully looking for!
Guilliman1962- XD Instant catch with the shipping tag. Thanks and I hope you like this one as much as the last.
free556655- Thanks for the kind words. The next one is right here.
Meetra 0 Surik- There are some things you love that you just find randomly but I'm glad you found it in this story. Filvis will find salvation, but you'll have to wait and see later.
Smoogabooga: Short and sweet. Many thanks, friend.
dzimgo- Thanks and I'll be sure to do my best!
Hydreigon662- I plan to so stay tuned to see how everything turns out.
Dragonrails- Now that I have your attention, here is chapter 2.
With all that out of the way now, enjoy!
One quick trip to his inn later, he grabbed what little things he had in his small bag, thanked the innkeeper for his hospitality, and hustled to his new home. This would form a small list of mistakes he had made before leaving.
Mistake 1: Leaving alone.
Mistake 2: Coming back alone.
Barely 15 minutes gone, Bell returned to find himself stopped at the gates by Bete once more. During his brief absence, Bete had been chuckling to himself, assuming that Bell had rushed out due to a rejection during his application. When he returned, beaming, the werewolf got in his way immediately and glared at him.
"What the hell are you doing back here, you damn brat?!"
Bell backed away a tiny bit. He was intimidated, but at the same time, he wondered what happened this time around to offend him, but clearly, Bete was upset at something.
He decided to do the natural thing and asked, "Um, did I do something wrong?"
A very poor choice of words.
"Don't try to be cheeky with me! What are you doing back here after running away, crying?!"
Now, Bell was even more confused.
"When did I do that? I only ran out earlier so I could get my stuff at the inn I was staying at. Lady Loki sent me there so I could be ready to move in."
"The hell do you mean 'move in?'"
Bete felt himself growing more annoyed by the second. The way the boy talked made it sound like he was joining the Familia, an idea that Bete found impossible.
"Not to sound rude, but wouldn't it be better for everyone in the Familia to live in the same place? I still don't know if Goddess found me a room yet."
Now, Bete was in front of Bell's face.
"Oi. If you didn't notice, we don't open our doors to weaklings. I don't know what you've been drinking, but go home."
"This is my home now." he tried to make it a point that he was moving in, but the werewolf wasn't budging. Bete was still in the mindset that Bell wasn't part of the Familia when he actually was.
Feeling a sense of deja vu, Cruz stepped in to deescalate the situation.
"Hey, let's just cool off. We don't need to start any trouble again."
Not wanting to get mouthed off by Riveria twice in one day, Bete just grunted. He decided to play along and returned to where he was sitting.
Cruz nodded to him before turning to Bell, "So, why exactly are you saying this place is your home?"
"Shouldn't it? Are the newer members of the Familia supposed to live outside until they're stronger?" he tilted his head slightly as he thought about why he was being denied entry.
Cruz raised an eyebrow and shook his head a bit, "Not that I'm aware of. Our members would typically live in the dormitories here."
"That's why I left and came back. It's so I could move in."
"Okay, you need to get on the same page as me. Are you joining us or something?"
Now it was Bell's turn to raise an eyebrow in confusion, "Join? I already did."
Off to the side, Bete spat out his drink after that last part. Now that he heard the young man say he was already part of their Familia, he got up from where he was sitting and marched over to them.
"Don't screw with me! No way in hell you managed to get into our Familia!"
Bell raised his hands and tried to tell him it was true, "I swear, that's the truth! Goddess Loki gave me her blessing already!"
"Bullshit!" Bete all but spat in his face with how close he was.
Cruz had to separate them again as Bete's screaming was bound to draw attention sooner or later. While the werewolf practically blew out his eardrums, an idea came into his head.
"Hey, Bell, right?"
The boy nodded.
"Now, I wouldn't normally ask this, even in my own Familia, but I think it should be fine assuming you just joined."
As he explained himself, someone finally came to see what was going on.
"What in the name of Loki is all this screaming about?"
The person who asked was a dwarf man, short but about the size one would expect from a dwarf. He had a face full of hair like most of his race and looked fairly old but still had plenty of fight left in him.
"Gareth, thank goodness. Perfect timing."
The old man was Gareth Landrock, another Senior Executive of the Loki Familia next to Riveria and Finn.
"Need me for something? Hard to enjoy a drink with all the racket."
"Sorry about that. We're in the middle of something with this newbie."
The dwarf walked over to them and eyed Bell.
"So, yer a new guy, lad? First I've heard."
"That's probably because I only just joined. Less than an hour ago actually. Goddess Loki said she would tell other people about it not too long ago."
Gareth turned to Cruz and Bete, "That true?"
Bete grunted and turned his head away while Cruz shrugged, "We don't know. That's what we've been trying to figure out."
"How'd you plan on doin' that?"
The chienthrope man rubbed his head as he explained his idea.
"I thought about asking him to show us his Falna. Bell, did our Goddess lock it yet?"
"Not that I know off," he wasn't aware of what that was. Bell hoped that Loki would tell him if she ever locked his status but, since he couldn't recall her saying anything about that, she probably didn't do that yet.
"If that's the case, then his status should be visible for us to see. By the way, I know I shouldn't be invading his privacy, but if he did just join like he said, then there shouldn't be any sensitive information for us to see."
Gareth nodded as he stroked his beard, "That sounds fair. However, lad, yer fine with us takin' a peek at yer back?"
Bell nodded, "I don't mind as long as this helps fix any confusion."
Gareth and Cruz asked him to turn and lift his shirt to show his back. That would be where his status would be. Sure enough, it was bright as day on his back.
"He really did join us," he muttered while his brain processed the shock of a young boy like Bell joining them. Cruz was quite surprised to see the boy was telling the truth.
With his high-level hearing, Bete picked up that last part and went to check for himself too. Like Cruz, his eyes widened seeing the Loki Familia Emblem on Bell's back.
"There's no way! How could you possibly be part of our Familia? What the hell was Finn thinking?!" he was utterly flabbergasted. How had this weak looking boy gained the Captain's approval? There was no way that could be possible. Not in his eyes.
Gareth blocked him with his arm to make sure he didn't get close to the boy and make the situation worse, "Settle down, Bete. We can all see Loki's blessing on the boy. That should be plenty of proof that he's one of us. By the way, welcome to the Loki Familia, young lad."
He stretched his hand out for Bell to grab while a big grin was plastered on his face. Having only been here a short time and almost being kicked out, the young man was not used to such hospitality.
He awkwardly took his hand and they shook on it, "Th-Thank you! I'm glad to be here!"
"That's that. I don't want to hear more of yer yappin about this again. If Finn and Loki came to this decision, then I got no reason to argue with their judgement," he looked over to Bete who looked very upset at the current developments.
"Tch! Fine!" Bete shoved his hands into his pockets and got out of the way.
Gareth nodded and motioned for Bell to follow, "Let's find Loki. We oughta at least get ye a room if yer gonna be stayin' with us."
Bell nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, Sir!"
Making their way inside, they asked around if anyone had seen the redhead. After a few minutes of searching, they eventually found her in the library with Riveria and Lefiya. She looked busy talking with them as they could hear what they were saying from the otherside of the door.
Bell and Gareth walked inside as Loki was giving the elves a final announcement about Bell's inclusion to the Familia.
"Yeah, we got ourselves a new member now. If ya ever run into the others, be sure to let them know that we'll be making that announcement during dinner tonight," she informed the high elf of this who nodded.
"Alright, I'll tell them if I happen to run into anyone else."
"Thanks, Riveria," she looked at her with gratitude before noticing Gareth and Bell enter the library as well. "Speaking off, the man of the hour is here. Back so soon, Bell?"
The boy rubbed the back of his head while his other arm carried what little belongings he had.
"Y-Yeah, it didn't take as long as I thought to check out of the inn."
"Heh. Well, since yer here, Riveria, Lefiya, say hello to our newest recruit."
Bell bowed to both of them, "I look forward to working with you!"
Lefiya dropped the book in her hands and stared at him bug-eyed.
"You actually got accepted?!" the surprise on her face said it all. Even if they only met today, Bell wished she had a little more faith in him.
"Y-Yes…" he felt his tiny ego deflate and Riveria had hit her lightly on the head for her poor choice of words.
"Lefiya!"
"Oh, s-sorry! I-I-I didn't mean it like that! I-um… wh-what I meant to say was, congratulations and welcome!" she gave an awkward smile to fix her tiny slip up. At the very least, Bell gave her a small smile in return while his pride had to heal once more.
Loki clapped her hands together and walked over to Bell's side, "So, you got all your stuff?"
"Yup. Everything I need is in this bag," he lifted his shoulder a bit to show her the bag he brought with him.
"Great! Let's get ya a room. I think we should have a few vacant ones in the men's wing. Come on!"
She dragged him away before he could even say goodbye. Gareth stroked his beard and laughed to himself at Bell being the victim of Loki's antics. Now that everything was under control, he left to return to his beloved booze while Riveria and Lefiya continued their work.
"Lady Riveria, aren't you surprised as well? You don't seem fazed about it."
The orange-haired elf looked curiously at her mentor. At the reveal of the news, the high elf didn't make any noticeable reactions, but her eyebrows raised a little. Truth be told, she too had low expectations for the boy. Nothing about him was extraordinary and he would stand out like a sore thumb in their Familia for obvious reasons. Still, Finn himself assessed the boy and if he passed, then he must be something special one way or another.
"I admit, I wasn't expecting this result. However, Finn himself came to this decision and Loki was there as a witness. If they decided he was worthy, then we must do our part to welcome him properly."
"Yes, of course."
Surprise aside, if he was a new recruit, then it only made sense to her to show him the proper hospitality befitting that of one of the top Familias in Orario.
"If I must, I wouldn't mind helping him adjust if he comes to me for help," she thought to herself. Lefiya only hoped his introduction would go smoother than his first impression at the gates earlier today.
After a few hours, dinner was going on as scheduled. The dining hall was filling up quickly as people got into groups to eat together. Whether it was people lining up to receive their meal or seating themselves, the hall grew loud with chatter.
Lefiya found herself a spot to sit as she waited for her companions to join her. Said companions would consist of two amazon twins and a golden-haired human girl.
"Hey, Lefiya!"
The first to arrive were the twins. Both wore the typical attire for their race which mainly consisted of clothing that covered a small amount of their body. The one with the smaller chest called out to Lefiya as they both sat across the table from her.
"Tiona. Tione, hello," she greeted them with a smile. Now was the time to wind down before night when it was time to sleep. The day had been particularly stressful for her but they wouldn't know why just yet.
"Where've you been? We haven't seen you all day," once she sat down, Tiona started digging into the large stack of food that barely balanced on her plate.
"Yeah. Were you with Riveria or something?"
The one who spoke next was Tione. She is Tiona's elder sister and she could be distinguished by her much more ample chest and long, straight hair while Tiona kept hers short and messy.
"Yes, I was. I… had to go out and pick up something which led to some complications to say the least," she remembered heading out thinking it would be a quick trip; yet, it led to one of the most stressful days she's ever had and this time was supposed to be calmer for her Familia.
"Did everything turn out ok?"
The blonde girl finally joined as well. She had heard Lefiya on her way over and wanted to know what happened.
"Oh! H-Hello, Miss Ais!"
Because of how much the elf admired her, she gave an awkward greeting along with a silly smile that the two amazons giggled to themselves over.
"Go on, Lefiya. What happened?" Tiona urged her to continue her story.
"Oh, right. Um, I basically ran into someone and had to apologize because my mind was somewhere else at the time. It was mostly my fault. After we settled that, he asked for directions to this place and I helped show him the way."
"Wait, wasn't Bete one of the guards on duty today?" Tione remembered that and she quickly realized where this was going.
Lefiya sighed and confirmed her suspicions with a nod, "Yeah. He gave the both of us trouble, but it eventually all worked out." Lefiya left out the bashing Bete gave her as well as how Bell came to her defense right away despite how they had only known each other a mere few hours.
"Well, all's well that ends well," Tiona nearly finished her plate and was about to leave for seconds before Finn spoke loudly on the stage at the front of the room.
"Attention, everyone!"
All in attendance turned to him. Loki was also next to him while Bell stood off the stage on the side and out of sight of most people. Most except Lefiya, who saw him looking very nervous.
"I'm sorry to interrupt you all, but I have an important announcement to make!"
The prum was not one to do this unless it was important enough to require the attention of everyone in the room. Naturally, many were curious about his interruption and asked around if anyone knew what it was about.
"What is it?"
"A new mission?"
"Are we doing it tonight?!"
Finn felt a chill hearing Tione say that, but he shook his head to all of their questions.
"Tonight is a special night because I want to introduce everyone to our newest member of the Loki Familia."
Several eyes widened. Being at the top of the city meant their expectations were high. Higher than what the average Familia asks for. Murmurs began as they wondered what the newbie would be like. This didn't happen as often as people thought. Special favors were one thing, but everyone had something special to offer in some way. The Familia needed to have these tight restrictions if they wanted to keep their place at the top.
"Allow me to introduce our newest recruit, Bell Cranel. Bell, come on up," he motioned for Bell to come onto the stage as well. The boy took shaky steps and all eyes were on him now. He brushed his hair with his hand a bit and gulped as he got next to Finn.
In the dining hall, the reactions were very mixed. Those like Bete wondered how he got in with how weak he looked. At least, most of the women were on his side. His looks already had them enthralled like how Loki was earlier than day.
"Oh my Loki, he's adorable!"
"Just like a rabbit!"
Once Bell was next to him, Finn gestured for them to quiet down once more.
"As you can see, Bell here is going to be part of our Familia from now on. Please be sure to treat him with proper respect and hospitality as he gets himself settled in."
After that, Finn stepped back and allowed Bell to speak.
"U-Um, first, I have to thank Mr. Finn and Lady Loki for giving me this opportunity. I promise I'll do my best for the Familia! Please, treat me well and I look forward to working with all of you!"
He gave a bow before dragging his trembling body off the stage alongside Finn and Loki.
Meanwhile, the room roared loudly with applause, mostly from the women but some men were pleased as well. A humble and respectable young man was a nice surprise given how the stereotypical adventurer was seen. Even for the senior members, seeing the manners Bell displayed gave them some renewed hope for the younger generation.
Once they were off the stage, Bell rested his hands on his knees while he caught his breath. Loki rubbed his back with a playful smirk seeing the act of speaking to a large audience take a lot out of him.
"First time doin' public speaking?"
"Y-Yeah… I thought my heart was gonna burst. I felt so nervous."
Finn chuckled at that.
"Sorry to put you on the spot like that. We always let the new members say something during their first night here."
"I'm just glad it's over…" he got back up and Finn motioned for him to go enjoy his first night here.
"Go grab a plate and make yourself comfortable."
"Right. Thank you again."
Bell walked over to the kitchen and got himself some food. His next dilemma was finding a place to sit. Since he just joined and knew basically no one, his brain told him to sit next to the familiar orange-haired elf he met only hours earlier.
When he arrived at her table, he gave a sheepish smile and asked if he could sit with them, "H-Hello, Miss Lefiya. I-Is it alright if I sit with you guys?"
She turned to her friends who looked at her and nodded before turning back to Bell. He took the one next to her and they resumed their meals. As they did, Bell tried to make small talk as Lefiya was basically the only one close enough to call a friend.
He turned to her and made an effort to start a conversation, "I… uh…"
A good start, except it wasn't.
The awkwardness would have killed him and then her as she didn't say a word. Both started steaming from their heads waiting for the other to say something. Good thing for them, they had the perfect ice breaker in arms reach.
Tiona swallowed the food currently in her mouth before barging into their awkward bubble. She had grabbed more food for herself while looking to see more about the new guy in the Familia.
"Hey, you're the new guy right?"
"Y-Yeah?"
"Nice to meet ya! I'm Tiona! Lefiya told us about how you two ran into each other earlier today and got into some trouble."
"Sh-She did?" he didn't expect her to talk about him. Although, considering the trouble he caused her, it made sense she would vent out some of her frustrations.
"Yeah! Talked about how you two ran into Bete and he gave you both a hard time."
Rather insensitive of Tione to mention that part as both looked away, depressed.
Bell hurriedly took the blame for the inconveniences Lefiya had to go through, "It's my fault. He would never have hurled all those insults her way if it weren't for me. I'm the one who asked for directions to come here."
The young man, of course, conveniently added the detail Lefiya left out about Bete and that made the other three girls there open their eyes wide.
"Slow down. Bete threw insults at her?" Tione pointed over to Lefiya who looked nervous as this was partly why she wanted to withhold this information.
"W-Wait," she tried to stop but the two weren't going to let this just slide.
"Yeah! He called her weak and useless even though she's a Level 3! I didn't even know she was that amazing!" he almost slammed his hands on the table from how upset he was getting. That memory of earlier today was still fresh in his head.
Tione quickly grew more furious while Lefiya did her best to keep her temper under control and not cause a scene.
"Miss Tione! Please, don't do anything rash!"
"What?! You expect me to let this go?! That damn dog has some nerve saying that about you!" she cracked her knuckles and planned to talk to him very violently with her fists.
"Waitwaitwait!" Lefiya had to reach and grab Tione's wrist from across the table to stop her. "Tione, just hear me out!"
She wasn't the only one as Tiona and Ais felt similar emotions. Had it not been for Bell joining with Lefiya too, there would have been a brawl in the dining room.
"Please, just wait a minute!"
They turned to him and Lefiya, the two trying to stop the other women from joining the enraged amazon.
"I know we just met, but I'd rather not have a fight end my first day here. Please, can we just let it go this first time? It was my fault to begin with."
Tione turned to him with an eyebrow raised, "If Bete was acting like he usually would, he would've insulted you too. You're really asking to let this go?"
Bell looked away and sighed before looking back at her, " Yeah. Lefiya was one thing, but what he said about me was right. Still, with Goddess' blessing, I have everything I need to prove him wrong. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to put all my effort into being the best adventurer I can be!"
His burning spirit had also burned away most anger they felt. It was quickly replaced by surprise and admiration of his spirit. Most people in his shoes would either feel too hurt to continue or get blinded with rage. In spite of everything, here was this rabbit-boy using those spiteful words to motivate himself.
"Huh. You really are a weird one. I like it!" Tiona felt he was very much different from the typical adventurer given how he was going to respond to Bete's words.
Tione just scratched her head before sitting back down.
"Well, that is the spirit and mindset the Captain likes to see. I never expected you to go along with it though. Most people would get discouraged or angry."
Bell nodded to himself as he felt he was going to go the former path. However, that all changed when the werewolf thought to verbally attack the elf as well. The fact they were of the same Familia was bad enough for Bell, but seeing someone insult someone who helped him, and a girl at that, was too far for him.
"Well, if anyone gives you a hard time, you can come to us," Tiona gave him a thumbs up. To her, a friend of Lefiya's was a friend of hers even if Bell and Lefiya weren't exactly friends yet.
Bell smiled and accepted her generous support, "I appreciate it."
He talked some more with the amazons and they got to know each other while Ais had her own talk with Lefiya.
"Are you sure you're alright?" she doubted Lefiya was as ok as she said she was.
As for the elf, she immediately blushed and waved her hands in front of her. Looking up to Ais greatly, she didn't want to worry her over something she felt was trivial.
"Y-Yes! That human has the right mindset. I shouldn't let something like this bother me, so I'll be working extra hard with Lady Riveria tomorrow."
Lefiya wasn't lying about that. Once the next day arrived, she was working through the books and had even Riveria a little surprised. The high elf wondered if Bell or Ais had something to do with it, but she was happy to see Lefiya applying herself more than usual.
With Bell, he went with Gareth so he could be officially registered as an adventurer and a member of the Loki Familia. The Guild was shocked to say the least that the boy had gotten into one of the best Familias in Orario. Many even doubted it at first until Gareth helped make it official with his confirmation. The white-haired boy joining the Loki Familia would be the talk of the city for the next few days.
After that, he met up with an elf named Alicia. Bell was immediately amazed by her long, golden hair, but snapped himself out of his trance to work on what they were there for. That being learning the basics of being an adventurer.
At Riveria's request, Alicia gave Bell the basic information regarding the Dungeon. She kept it minimal to just the first four floors as Bell wouldn't need to go lower than that for the next several months.
He saw she was very nice and helped him learn a great deal. However, she was shocked to see how quickly he picked up this new information.
"I think I've got it now."
"What? It's only been a few hours. We're still a fair bit of time away from noon and it's your first lesson on the Dungeon."
She highly doubted he was telling the truth and just assumed he was being impatient.
"Considering we did finish what we were supposed to cover, I can give you a test to see how much you really know."
"Alright," he nodded and she quickly put one together for him. She would give him thirty minutes to complete it and she would be watching the whole time.
In her head, she doubted he would be capable of even the average passing grade. So, one could understand her surprise to see he received a perfect score in barely half the time he was given to take the test and after she graded his paper. Not only that, but she watched him take the test the whole time and the boy showed no signs of cheating.
"Impossible! How could you…" she looked over to Bell and the boy had a worried look on his face.
"Is something wrong? Did I fail?"
Alicia quickly set the paper down and explained herself before his anxiety got the better of him.
"Nono, you didn't fail. You passed, but that's another… concern," she didn't want to make it sound like a bad thing. "This is a great deal of information and most people would take several days to understand it completely; yet you did it on your first try."
"Um, sorry?"
"No, don't be! This was completely fair and honest, so don't feel like you did something wrong. I will tell Lady Riveria about this and you can start getting ready for your first dive in the Dungeon."
Bell's eyes sparkled at that. Now, he was finally getting to where he wanted to be.
The Dungeon. That is where his story would begin.
Alicia took the results to Riveria who was surprised to see her back so soon. She was caught more off guard by the news she brought. Alicia wasn't one to lie to her but what she was saying was very hard to believe. However, with no evidence to disprove it, Riviera had to come to terms with the results.
"That boy is impressive. No wonder Finn accepted him."
"Don't you find it weird though? I'm not saying he's suspicious but there's a great deal of mystery behind him. I can't think of anyone who can do what he just did."
Riveria nodded, "We will just have to observe him. It's only his first day and I highly doubt there's anything malicious intent behind him."
Alicia had to agree even with the small amount of time she spent with him.
Off to the side, Lefiya overheard their talk as well and wondered if there was more to Bell as well.
It had been over three weeks since Bell joined the Loki Familia and that time had not been the most eventful to say the least. That's what he thought anyway.
In that time, he proved to quickly adapt to the first four floors of the Dungeon even if equipped with the standard gear the Guild provided. At least, Loki was able to get him some low class daggers others in the Familia tossed aside once they were able to afford something better.
Finn had been monitoring Bell's progress over the last several weeks. Even as they had to prepare for their expedition ordered by The Guild, he made sure to spare enough time to watch Bell. As he did, Bell made Finn more curious. He couldn't believe someone was capable of easing into the Dungeon so fast with only the base Falna supporting him.
Not only that, but Finn had even caught Bell practicing with his blades. The prum saw several flaws in his technique and gave Bell some advice to improve himself. After the boy thanked him, Finn came back later to see a massively improved Bell. Just as he thought, the boy was quick to learn and adapt as he mastered the new tips Finn gave him almost immediately.
As for his dive in the Dungeon, he would come back with some injuries but halfway through his second week, he came back only looking a little dirty. The staff at the Guild questioned if he went into the Dungeon at all but those doubts were put to rest once he showed them all the magic stones he collected.
With his technique, he had invested more of his money into a bigger bag, at a friend's recommendation, and would slowly build his savings. Though, considering his Familia's knack for burning through Valis, that was going to prove to be a challenge sooner or later.
Also in his time in Orario, he's befriended many more people. In his Familia, he's on good terms with other members like Raul and Anakitty, who asks Bell to call her Aki like everyone else. He ran into many more people, most of which were among the Second and Third Class and they all got along well with Bell. Bete and a few of the other more troublesome members were the only ones Bell was having minor issues with, but he could work on that at his own pace.
For Bell's status, he was still only in the first ranks of his Basic Abilities with only his agility breaking past 100 points. Everything else was currently between 30-70 as of his last update except magic, which was still at zero for obvious reasons.
Presently, most of the Familia was away on their expedition but should be back some time today or tomorrow, not that it mattered much to him. He wasn't going anywhere near what they were tackling any time soon, so today was business as usual like every other day.
After cutting down another group of monsters, he sighed before going off to collect the stones they left behind.
"I wonder how long it'll take me to go on missions like everyone else? Even Miss Lefiya is with them," he thought this to himself as he wondered exactly what future awaited him. He still knew his goal: get stronger and become a hero. It was the whole point of becoming an adventurer in the first place, though, his Grandfather wouldn't leave him alone either. Bell could still hear his voice demanding he make a harem for himself.
He shook those thoughts aside as he still needed to be strong enough to save any damsel in distress he could run into in the Dungeon. That wasn't going to happen if he was still crawling around the upper levels of the Dungeon.
"I need to do more. Maybe I should ask if I can go to Floor 5 tomorrow?" he thought about it and that seemed like the smartest idea.
"Nah."
Impatience overtook his logic and he began descending to Floor 5 early. It was a choice he would regret in the coming days, but also be grateful for for the rest of his life.
With the Expedition Group, they were currently making their way up through the Middle Floors. A few like Tiona were feeling quite sour they couldn't go any further.
"Man, this sucks!"
Gareth had to keep her cool before she punched a wall or something, "Settle down, Lass. There's nothing we can do about it."
"Those weird caterpillars came out of nowhere. Captain, have you ever seen anything like them?" Tione turned to Finn who shook his head at her question.
"I haven't. Those are a new species for me. Once we return to the surface, we should report this to the Guild right away. Riveria, can you take care of that?" he asked that Riveria take care of that which she agreed with.
The one feeling the worst currently was Lefiya. Her mood had been rock bottom all day due to how she had messed up twice in a heated situation where she was needed. Ais and the others had tried to cheer her up to minimal success.
She sighed out loud again and looked towards Ais. The elf knew her friend and idol had a lot on her mind too. Ais had gone off on her own multiple times which landed her a few talks with Finn and the others. That only made her feel worse as she had no idea how to help her friend while they've done much more to help her.
Though, the thing occupying most of her thoughts was what Riveria told her earlier that day about trusting her comrades.
"Trust my comrades… why is that so hard? I know they'll do everything they can to support me so why can't I trust them?" she thought that loudly to herself. Her friends have always been there for her and she knows that, yet she still freezes up when monsters get too close. "I'll always be a burden if I don't fix this soon."
As she mentally beat herself up, the group arrived at a room that had begun spawning monsters all around them. Everyone upped their guard as the walls around them cracked and dozens of minotaurs surrounded them. Though, being mostly First and Second Class, this was more of a minor inconvenience to them.
Finn was quick to order them to take care of this horde, "Let's clear out this group quickly!"
Tione, Tiona and Bete were more than happy to do so. They all gained glints in their eyes as they each killed one with ease.
The minotaurs saw they were very much in the wrong neighborhood and bolted out, screaming. Finn's eyes widened from seeing them flee for the exit to the Upper Floors and he ordered everyone to pursue them, "Stop them! There could be more adventurers in the Upper Floors!"
They realized the danger other people would be in and quickly chased after the escaped minotaurs.
A small amount of time had passed and everyone had to split up all over the Dungeon to track them all down. There were only a few left and one group was in the middle of tracking one.
"Bete, can you find it?" Ais asked Bete if he knew as Lefiya trailed behind them. She was with Riveria before she heard another and split off on her own to deal with it. Now it was the three of them.
"The damn roars keep echoing all over the place. It's getting hard to pin it down."
While he growled to himself, they all listened in and heard that it wasn't so much that the roars were echoing. It was that there was more than one in the area.
"Ah, damn! Ais, split up!"
The swordswoman nodded and Lefiya went with her. Once they got closer, they heard multiple roars again.
"There's still more?!"
"Lefiya, we'll have to split up too."
The elf's eyes widened when she said that. It's not that she couldn't handle a minotaur on her own, but she would have preferred not to.
"Miss Ais, wha-," Ais wouldn't be able to catch the rest of what Lefiya had to say before she took the branching path.
With a big gulp, Lefiya ran down the other and heard the roar of a minotaur grow louder. Though, as she did, she heard another scream close to it. One that sounded familiar.
In hindsight, perhaps Bell was biting off more than he could chew by going down to Floor 5 early. Though, to his credit, it was only one floor. How was he supposed to know this would happen?
"Why is there a minotaur on Floor 5?!" he screamed that in his head or out loud. He couldn't tell because he was far too busy running for his life.
After the first hour or so on Floor 5, it wasn't that bad for him. He felt he could handle it given enough time, but when the massive minotaur came charging in, he knew this was just a little too much for him at the moment.
At the moment, he was trying to lose it with little success. His only stroke of luck was leading it both up to Floor 4 where he was more comfortable with the layout and the corridor Lefiya was taking to reach the source of the noise. She was very much surprised to run into Bell.
"WAAAAH!"
"B-Bell?!" he nearly ran into her but quickly spun out of the way before they collided. Lefiya was going to ask what was wrong before a loud roar echoed behind them, forcing Bell to grab her hand and run away with her.
"Sorry!"
"What?! Hey, what are you doing?!"
"I'm trying to save you from that!" he pointed towards the minotaur behind them. Being Level 3, Lefiya wasn't going to have much trouble keeping up with Bell, but it was times like this she wished she boosted her Agility more.
After running up to Floor 4, Bell finally made the mental connection about Lefiya and her level.
"Miss Lefiya!"
"Huh?!"
"You're Level 3, right?!"
"Yeah?!"
"Can't you handle that thing?!"
"NO!"
She'd need time to cast a spell to kill that and with their current situation, that wasn't likely. It didn't help that her skills with concurrent chanting were lackluster to put it lightly.
That left Bell with another predicament before they passed a spot Bell was very familiar with.
"I have an idea!"
"That is?"
"I'll buy you time to chant so you can blast that thing!"
She looked incredulously at him, "Are you out of your mind?! You can't handle that thing alone!"
He tried to assure her he could by making use of his knowledge of the upcoming terrain. They were approaching a small loop in the floor that was big enough for Lefiya to chant her shortest spell and for Bell to have enough ground that the minotaur wouldn't gain on him.
As much as Bell hated to admit it, Lefiya was basically dragging the both of them since she was faster at the moment and why the minotaur hadn't crushed them yet.
When they neared another end of the hall, he told her what she needed to do, "Once we make that turn, you can hide in one of the branching hallways. I'll lead it around and back to you. You have to be ready when we come back."
Lefiya nodded as she wasn't coming up with anything better. When they reached the corner and turned left on it, Lefiya made another left quickly and hid in a side corridor with a dead end while Bell and the minotaur quickly passed by her.
Not wasting time, she immediately got to chanting, "Unleashed streak of light, bow limbs of the holy tree. You are the master archer-"
She had been closing her eyes and focusing on her chant. As a result, she had barely begun to process the loud footsteps heading her way before she saw the minotaur turn the corridor and face her. Fear began creeping into her heart as it roared and prepared to charge at her. A sense of deja vu also filled her as this was not the first time she was in this situation. One where she was stuck
The monster wouldn't get the chance before Bell jumped onto its back and latched on by driving his daggers into it.
"I'm the one you're fighting!" he screamed loudly before the monster roared to throw him off. With how thick its hide is, the daggers didn't dig very deep at all and just a small jerk of its body was enough to send Bell flying into a wall.
Luckily for him, he lived but he felt a few things break if coughing up a lot of blood didn't tell him that much.
Lefiya saw him struggle on the ground as the minotaur approached him. Her eyes widened and she quickly finished her spell, her magic circle not faded away yet, "Shoot, sniper of the fairies! Penetrate, arrow of absolute accuracy! ARCS RAY!"
A beam of magic shot out from her staff and blasted through the minotaur's chest. As it exploded into a pile of ash, Bell looked up at the elegant form of Lefiya right after she cast her spell and before the minotaur that had towered above him delivered the final blow.
That look of determination on her face and the way her dress and hair swayed from the shockwave of her spell. All of it left Bell speechless. Even as things began calming down, the beating in his chest wasn't.
Lefiya breathed a sigh of relief once the threat was dealt with. She ran over to Bell and held her hand out to him, "Are you ok? Can you stand?"
The close proximity and the genuine concern on her face only made his heart beat faster. Her face only grew more concerned as Bell started coughing from trying to thank his savior.
"D-Don't talk! I'll help you out of here!" Lefiya stuttered out quickly while finding a way to help him.
"Th-Thank you…"
He gave a small smile that she didn't really see. She didn't even try to salvage Bell's weapons as getting him out was more important. She was so deep in her head that she didn't hear Ais and Riveria call out to her, nor the loud laughter of Bete once everyone started catching up. Once they were out of the Dungeon, Lefiya made a bee line for Dian Cecht's Pharmacy to get Bell help.
It took them some time, but they managed to make it there and ask the silver-haired woman behind the counter for help.
"Miss Airmid! It's urgent!"
Airmid, the woman behind the counter, saw Bell's condition and out her serious face on.
"Come with me."
Lefiya followed her and they were led into an empty room that was ready for use.
Airmid quickly put some gloves on and got to work, "Set him down gently."
The elf nodded and Bell only groaned a tiny bit as his body was set onto the bed. Airmid examined his body and concluded that he had several broken bones, but not the damage wasn't severe enough to need any type of cast but he would be out of the Dungeon for a few days.
After preparing a potion for him, she helped him drink it and Bell felt the pain begin to fade.
"How are you feeling, Sir?"
"B-Better now…" he felt good enough to sit up in his bed but Airmid stopped him from going further.
"Just stay there and rest. Your body has been through enough for today."
"Am I in a hospital?"
He looked around now that the pain wasn't the only thing on his mind.
Lefiya brought a chair over and sat next to his bed, "You're at Dian Cecht's Pharmacy. Miss Airmid is here to help you."
"Yes. Several of your bones had broken but the damage was minimal somehow, so you won't need a cast."
Bell was thankful for that.
"However, I would like to ask that you stay here and rest for a few hours. I will discharge you after as you should be fit to perform normal activities."
"I understand. Thank you, Miss."
Airmid left the room and Bell laid back on his bed while Lefiya looked at him with regret.
"I'm sorry."
"Huh?"
"The minotaur, it was our fault. We were surrounded by a massive horde of them on the Middle Floors and they ran away from us. One must have run into you and that's why you're stuck in here now."
She gripped her skirt and tears pricked her eyes a little.
"B-But how is that your fault?"
"It's my fault you got hurt again! If I were a better adventurer, I could've handled that situation better! For Loki's sake, I'm a Level 3 and I can't even handle one minotaur!"
Lefiya grit her teeth before Bell tried to calm her down.
"Miss Lefiya, please! You are amazing! You even saved my life today! I wouldn't be here if you hadn't been there to help me!"
"But…"
The elf was still having flashbacks to her other instances of freezing up, but this was somehow the one time it changed. It had cost Bell a lot, but she managed to fight back her doubt in that instance and save the both of them.
"If I'm being honest, you helped save us too. I nearly froze up again and killed both of us."
"You didn't-"
She raised her hand to stop him as she wasn't done, "Let's just agree we saved both of us, okay?"
"Sure."
He was content to leave it at that as it was better than hearing his savior talk about how worthless she was. Though, since she was going anywhere for whatever reason, he decided to cure the boredom by striking up a new topic.
"So, how was the expedition?"
She grimaced a bit, "Not the best. We had to cut it off after a new monster species ambushed our camp."
"Is everyone ok?!"
She confirmed that no one died which made Bell relieved. As the minutes ticked by, the two were interrupted with a few knocks on their door. Once they welcomed their visitor, they were surprised to see Loki barge in.
"Bell!"
She rushed in and jumped onto the boy. While wasn't as hurt anymore, he would've rather not experience the extra weight while he recovered.
"Godde- OOF!"
"Yer not hurt, are ya?!" she put her hands on his cheeks and looked with a worried face.
"Lady Loki, he'll be fine if you get off of him!"
The Goddess saw she was making him uncomfortable and giggled before hopping off the bed.
"So, Airmid says you can head out when she finishes checkin' ya up. Glad to know yer safe and sound."
She smiled before Lefiya asked about the others since she hadn't returned to them.
"I met up with Finn and everyone else before I got here. They gave me a brief rundown but I needed to make sure my newbie was ok."
Bell smiled at the thoughtful sentiment, "Thank you, Goddess."
"Since yer gonna be fine, you can join the rest of us at the Hostess of Fertility. We're gonna celebrate a safe return from the expedition. Lefiya?"
"I can show him where it is."
"Great! I'll see you two there!" she grinned brightly as she began to make her exit.
Loki made her way out but not before thanking Airmid for her help. After she did, said woman walked in and did a final examination on Bell. Once the boy was cleared, he and Lefiya made their way out.
From there, they returned home and changed into a fresh set of clothes before making their way to their dinner destination as at this time, everyone else was being seated.
"We should hurry," she said in an impatient voice as on their way home, Lefiya told Bell all about the good food the place had to offer. "By the way sorry I didn't get your weapons."
He shook his head and said it was fine as they were in rough shape during their scuffle and he still had a third spare on him.
"Well then, let's go meet up with the others."
Bell nodded as he wanted to try out the food and the two made their way over.
When they arrived, they found Tiona and the others ready with seats for them as the others had already started drinking.
When Bell got his order of food, to say he was shocked was putting it lightly. The young man had never tasted food of this quality. Lefiya gained a smug smirk seeing Bell chew through his food at a rapid pace.
"I told you it was good."
"No kidding! I could eat this everyday!"
Ais was relieved to see them alright. As she was about to talk about how she saw them leave the Dungeon earlier, Bete spoke to her in a loud and booming voice, already drunk.
"Hey, Ais! Tell everyone about what we saw in the Dungeon earlier today!"
The blonde looked over to him confused. That didn't exactly narrow it down very well.
"What do you mean?"
"You know, the dumb rookie who got his ass beat by one of the minotaurs!"
The girl tilted her head and the others wanted to know what he was talking about. The only ones who were immediately aware of it were Bell and Lefiya.
Tiona looked over to Bete and asked what he was talking about.
"Something happen?"
"Ha! Something happened, all right! That dumb rabbit-boy who joined us was wandering around Floor 5 and got caught by a minotaur! The idiot tried to take it on and got his ass handed to him!"
As he laughed, Bell kept his head down and tightly gripped the fork he was holding. Lefiya and the others saw and immediately got mad with the werewolf.
"This crap again? Bell almost died and you're laughing about it?" Tiona was angry, but Bete didn't care.
"It's his fault for biting off more than he could chew. Even Lefiya had to drag his sorry ass out of there."
After another jab at him, Riveria quickly jumped in at scolding him.
"Enough, Bete! It was our fault this happened. You shouldn't put the blame onto him."
"Huh?! You got a problem with calling trash trash, hag?! He shouldn't even be in this Familia!"
Loki felt the atmosphere taking a turn and jumped in too, "Bete, cool it. Yer spoiling the mood."
"Like hell I am! That little runt thinks he can hang with the best in the city? Don't make me laugh! He can go back home and cry to his Mommy and Daddy because weaklings like him don't belong in the Dungeon and especially not in the Loki Familia!"
That was the final straw for Bell as he got up from his seat at last. Lefiya looked over with worry all over her face.
"Bell?"
His hair was covering his eyes, so she couldn't tell how he was feeling, but she didn't need to be an expert to know it wasn't anything good.
"I… I'm heading out early."
She called out his name again, but when she got up, he quickly raced out of the place. When he turned, Lefiya could see the tears in his eyes. Worry soon turned to anger as her face turned red and she yelled at the werewolf.
"What is wrong with you?!"
Bete simply raised an eyebrow at her, "Huh? You got a problem too? Not my fault he's nothing but a tiny rabbit."
The elf's anger boiled over and she threw a drink at him while he wasn't paying attention followed by a loud, rageful shout.
"YOU ARE THE WORST!" after she said that, she bolted out and went to follow after Bell.
Needless to say. Riveria had to go to extraordinary lengths to keep Bete in line and allow the party to go on. That would include tying him to the ceiling, gagging him and making sure he didn't drink anymore. Although, more than a few couldn't help but worry about the boy who dashed out after being insulted.
After several hours, Lefiya ran all around the Dungeon but had no luck in finding the boy. She had no idea how she even lost him. The fact that the halls were more crowded with monsters since most people were out at this hour didn't help. The surplus of monsters only made it more dangerous for Bell.
It was just barely an hour before daybreak before she finally ran into Bell. He was covered in blood, but mostly from monsters. The boy spent all that time venting his anger and at the same time, evading the elf searching for him.
Words couldn't describe the relief the elf felt when she saw him. Lefiya spent those hours searching also regretting not stepping in for Bell. He did so in a heartbeat for her, yet she wasn't able to do the same, so she felt horrible about that. Lefiya quickly helped support his tired body back to the surface.
Once they were outside, Bell met her eyes and he was about to apologize before he saw her face contort with great anger. The color quickly left his face and he remembered why it was a bad idea to make her angry.
Lefiya raised the staff she was holding into the air. The scared rabbit took a big gulp before he felt his world go dark and a loud, angry voice echo in his mind.
"YOU IDIOT!"
A/N
So, that was longer than I thought it'd be. Sorry for the wait, but here's chapter 2. I wonder what's in store for Bell when he gets back home for a status update hehehe~
Well, thanks for all the love last chapter and I hope you guys still have some leftover for this one. Please...
Don't murder me in the reviews but do leave your thoughts on this chapter there. I shall prepare the next one for everyone's reading pleasure.
Tata~