Reposting this since some of you guys are saying you can't read this and seeing if this will fix it.
"Did you really have to beat up my poor Bell so badly?" Hestia questioned Chiron almost accusingly as her arms were wrapped around the bandaged and somewhat bruised boy's neck almost protectively as she looked at the teacher with a glare.
"Trust me Goddess, it's for his own good. He'll never improve his Defense stat or his pain tolerance if he doesn't get hurt, and I think you would prefer it if it was done in a controlled training session rather than in the middle of a life or death situation in the Dungeon." Chiron said with a small laugh, mildly amused with how protective Hestia was being over Bell. "Besides, I managed to find some herbs in one of the nearby stores and I've already treated his wounds! He already doesn't have nearly as many wounds as he did after our training!"
"That's part of the problem!" Hestia cried out at him, her two long strands of hair erecting like spikes at her anger as she glared at the still smiling Chiron. Although she couldn't argue with his first point, the goddess was still against just how tough Chiron was on Bell.
"Please calm down Goddess! I'm sure Ch-Archer knows what he's doing, and I'm perfectly fine! Plus people are beginning to stare!" Bell begged Hestia, noticing the adventurers and every day people around them were beginning to stare at the small group.
"Not until this jerk apologizes for beating you black and blue!" Hestia yelled back and pretty much demanded for Chiron to do.
When Hestia had gotten back from her shift and the food stand, she had been horrified to see the condition that Bell had been in following the first training session with Chiron. Not that anyone could blame her cause, quite frankly, there had been adventurers returning from the Deeper Floors that have looked better than Bell. Being told later that Bell had actually looked worse less than an hour ago, and only looked as good as he did because Chiron had helped him a decent amount. Bell already had numerous bruises and bandages, so had she seen what he looked like before, it was very likely that she would've fainted.
Bell on the other hand, was simply relieved that he had only been beaten up as much as he had been. Although Chiron said he had wanted to keep the training going until Hestia had come back, it had been cut short when Bell suddenly found himself unable to move due to a burning sensation that was spread throughout his body. At first he had thought that he was just too battered and bruised to move, but Chiron knew it was something else entirely. With Chiron's eyes glowing with a soft light, he explained to Bell that what he felt was really his magical energy being consumed at such a rapid pace that it was affecting his motor skills, which meant that Heracles was currently in a fight. He also explained, in more of a throw away manner, that the Berserker Servant was practically an open faucet of magical energy in a fight and it was something that he would get used to as time went on.
So, with any further training made difficult at the very least, Chiron carried Bell back to the church for him to rest as he treated him.
Right now though, Chiron, Bell, and Hestia were traveling through Orario on the same route Bell had shown Heracles and Chiron earlier. It was nearing nighttime, and they were on their way to go eat. Hestia of course questioned why they were going out to eat dinner, and was displeased to hear that they had made something of an appointment at a restaurant to pay back a young girl who had given Bell her breakfast. This of course led to Hestia practically chewing Bell's ear off in anger and jealousy at him accepting food from another girl, but wasn't against going to the restaurant for dinner, though she was a bit worried about how much it would cost with Familia's current financial state. Chiron would alleviate those worries saying how he and Bell had made a decent haul in the Dungeon today alongside whatever Heracles would bring back that would be much more valuable that what they had gotten, allowing them to afford it.
Chiron also added that this could be excused as a celebration for him and Heracles joining the Familia. Unable to argue against his points, and also because she hadn't eaten anything besides potato snacks the last few days and didn't bring any home today, Hestia agreed to go out for dinner. Though that didn't mean that she was suddenly happy with him and his treatment of Bell during their training.
They didn't head out immediately, both because Bell needed a little bit more time to heal some more and to wait for Heracles. This was after all, part of this meal was to celebrate him joining the Familia. However, Chiron thought it was best that they didn't wait for him, because not only did they not know how long he would be gone, but also that bringing him to a public place filled with adventurers when not all of them would have seen the notice about him would be asking for trouble. Both Hestia and Bell were hesitant about going without him, but decided that Chiron was right, though he did make them feel somewhat better by suggesting that they get him some food.
"...You know Chiron, you were probably right on not waiting for Heracles." Bell said as the three of them were standing outside of the Hostess of Fertility.
"Quite." Chiron responded as Hestia nodded next to him as they all stared through the open door of the restaurant to see it filled to the brim with dozens of customers, with most of them, if not all of them, clearly being adventurers. Had they brought Heracles, the best outcome would've been a very uncomfortable dinner as all of the armed patrons openly stared at them. The worst, and more likely outcome considering how much the patrons were drinking and how long they would all be there, was a brawl/fight.
"Oh, you came!" Syr said as she appeared in the doorway of the restaurant, walking down the steps to greet them, though she took notice of the absence of a specific Berserker Servant and the presence of a certain goddess. "Where's the big dark guy? And who is this?"
"And who do you happen to be?" Hestia asked almost accusingly as she darkly glared at Syr since the silver haired girl had walked up to Bell.
"Ahem." Chiron coughed, grabbing the attention of the girls and getting in between the two of them so that his half-sister from another world didn't do anything rash. "Berserker decided to stay in the Dungeon later than anticipated so he was unfortunately unable to join us. As for who this is, this is the goddess of our familia, and this is Syr, the waitress who allowed us to make the appointment here."
"Berserker? That's a strange name." Syr thought out loud before smiling at Hestia, who was still staring up at her distrustfully. "It's a pleasure to meet you goddess."
"Now that you say that, we never really introduced ourselves did we?" Bell said.
"Hm, you're right." Chiron said as he thought back to when they had met Syr before frowning. "And even after we had asked for your name. How rude of us..."
"It's alright! I did kind of run off to get back to work before you got the chance to." Syr said, smiling at Chiron.
"Regardless, allow me to rectify that. This is Bell and you can call me Archer." Chiron said, gesturing between himself and Bell as he gave their names to the young girl, with Bell waving at her somewhat awkwardly.
"Nice to meet you!" Syr said, smiling at all of them. "By the way, do any of you have problems sitting at that bar? With how busy we are right now, it might be a bit of a wait until a table is ready for the three of you."
"I don't have a problem with that." Bell responded pretty quickly.
"I don't mind it either." Hestia said with an indifferent shrug, just wanting to be seated in hopes that Syr would go take care of some of the other patrons, leaving her alone with Bell… aside from Chiron of course.
"Well it looks like it's decided then!" Chiron said to Syr who nodded before turning around and leading the trio into the restaurant and to their seats.
"So you're some of Syr's friends!" said a giant of a woman a few minutes after the group had made their orders as she put down a large bowl of noodles in front of Bell, who was caught off guard by the size of the bowl in front of him. "I didn't know they made adventurers as cute as you!"
"Please don't tease me like that…" Bell said with a mildly insulted look on his face as Hestia sent a jealous glare at the woman, thinking that the teasing was actual flirtation.
"Though Syr told me that there was supposed to be a big guy with you. The kind that would eat a lot." the woman said as she put down another plate in front of Chiron, ignoring the glare Hestia was giving her while Bell began to do mental gymnastics in his head to figure out how much this meal would cause the small familia.
"Yes, unfortunately though, he was too busy taking care of something to come here. Don't worry though, I'll make sure to get something for him to eat before we leave." Chiron said, already seeing what the woman was trying to get to.
"Ha! Nice to know! Let me know if you need anything else." the woman said as she went off to go help some of the other customers.
"Mama Mia seems to be happy with how much you guys are ordering." Syr said from behind Bell before smiling at him as he turned to look at her. "So how are you enjoying yourself?"
"I feel like I'm losing my mind over the prices here despite Archer telling me not to worry about it." Bell said to Syr, causing her to giggle.
"Sorry to hear that, but it sounds like I'll be making some pretty good money tonight though!" Syr said through her giggles.
"Good for you…" Bell said with a deadpan look on his face at her words, causing her to only giggle more.
"Bell!" yelled a somehow already drunk Hestia as she wrapped her arms around Bell's neck and shoulders from behind. "Stop paying attention to the other girls and pay attention to me!"
The scene made Syr giggle even more while Chiron smirked in shared amusement. That didn't stop the two of them from noticing the suspiciously untouched cup of ale that the goddess had ordered.
"By the way, I didn't want to be rude about it earlier, but why do you look like you get beat up?" Syr asked, gesturing to the various bruises and bandages that covered Bell.
"Yes Bell, why were you beaten within an inch of your life?" a sarcastic Hestia asked rhetorically, her arms still wrapped around Bell's shoulders, giving a vicious glare at Chiron, who pretended not to notice as he continued to eat his meal.
"Haha, well let's just say as nice as Archer is… he's not very kind when it comes to training." Bell said.
"It's for your own good, I promise!" Chiron said as he continued to eat his food.
"Yeah I know…" Bell said with a sigh as Syr looked at Chiron in surprise.
"Hey Syr, I could use some help for a few seconds!" One of the other waitresses, a black haired cat girl, called out to the silver haired girl and caused her to sigh.
"You wouldn't mind if I go help her out would you?" Syr asked Bell, speaking in a cutesy voice that immediately caused another glare to be sent at her from Hestia.
"Uh, I'm not sure why you're asking me, but I guess not?" Bell asked in a confused tone that caused Syr to giggle before she went off to help her coworker.
"So how was your first trip down into the Dungeon?" asked Hestia after she gave a sigh of relief that Syr was no longer there for the time being.
"It was… enlightening, I suppose you could say." Chiron answered after trying to find the right word for a moment and before taking another bite of his food.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Hestia questioned, confused as to what the Servant meant.
"Well, we found out that the monsters in the dungeon treat Berserker like a monster from a deeper floor and avoid him." Bell answered while Chiron swallowed his food.
"Yes, and it puts us in a rather unique problem since that means Berserker can't protect Bell down in the Dungeon without stunting his growth or monetary income and I won't always be available to do it as the Familia Captain." Chiron explained further.
"Huh. Well I guess unique is a good way of putting that. Especially since I know none of the other gods have to deal with anything like this." Hestia said, though the last part was mostly to herself in an exasperated tone.
"Have you thought of anything yet?" Bell asked Chiron, catching Hestia's attention once again.
"Well, I certainly have already thought of something, but I'd like to check on how much your stats have gone up before really considering it."
"Huh? What does my stats have to do with anything?" Bell asked in confusion, as Hestia also had a similar look of confusion.
"Well, at the risk of getting your hopes up, and while I'm sure it won't be today or even tomorrow, let's just say that if the stats and excelia work in the way I understand it, we may be getting a new member of the Familia earlier than expected." Chiron explained with a small smirk on his face, enjoying the looks of realization and then utter excitement and happiness on Bell's.
Though Hestia seemed to be a bit more cautious at the idea. No doubt Chiron's description of the dangers of Mind Down and having too many Servants at once echoing in her mind and subding any excitement at the idea of her Familia growing even more. She even opened her mouth to question Chiron on whether or not that it was safe, but was forced to stop herself with the sudden return of Syr.
"I'm back! Hope you didn't miss me too much!" Syr said upon her return from helping out the other waitress.
"Oh don't worry, you weren't missed at all." Hestia said to the girl with a glare.
"Goddess!" Bell exclaimed, surprised at such a rude comment from Hestia, though it only caused Syr to giggle at his reaction.
"The big party with the reservation is here!" suddenly came the voice of one of the other waitresses, this time a cat girl with light brown hair. calling out to the rest of the restaurant, earning the attention of all of the patrons, including the Hestia Familia.
Following behind the waitress that had made the announcement was a large group led by someone who was clearly a goddess, making it clear the group as a whole was a Familia. It was also obvious that this wasn't just any Familia either. The noise and activity of the Hostess of Fertility quickly ceased to be as everyone began to openly stare at the newly arrived group.
"Oh, the Loki Familia!" Syr said in recognition of the group as they all began to be seated at the largest table in the restaurant.
"The Loki Familia? They're the strongest Familia in the city beside the Freya Familia correct?" Chiron asked in confusion as he looked away from the group to Syr, who blinked in surprise at Chiron's words. "Do you really not know who they are?"
"I've only just recently arrived in the city, and I lived by myself, away from any towns for the most part. This is only the second or third time I've heard about them."
"Wow." Syr said, surprised that there was someone out there who really had not heard about the Loki Familia. "Must have been pretty out of the way then."
"Indeed." Chiron said before looking back at the Familia, who all began to drink and feast in what seemed like a celebration of some sort, before noticing how the goddess, who he could only assume was the Loki of this world, was talking casually with Mama Mia. "Are they usual customers here?"
"Yeah, their patron goddess Loki really likes coming here a lot… like a lot actually."
Chiron gave a hum of recognition at Syr's words as he continued to analyze the other Familia. Of course, he was slightly surprised that Loki was a goddess here, but that wasn't anything major as he recalled one myth where his world's Loki shape shifted into a female horse and even gave birth in that form. He was actually more surprised that she was one of the head authorities in this city considering his world's version infamy as a trickster god. Though just watching how this Loki acted for a couple of seconds showed that she was still very much one, so somethings didn't change no matter what world it was.
Onto the other members of the Familia… it was clear that each one of them were strong in their own right. True, none of them seemed like they were capable of matching a Servant going all out at first glance, but that was hardly a fair standard to be held to. It left him little to wonder how this Familia was considered to be the strongest in all of Orario.
He wasn't the only one from his Familia paying close attention to the other Familia, much to the irritation of the goddess of the Familia.
Bell was looking at each of them in awe. Unlike Chiron, who had only been in their world for only a day, he had heard stories of Braver, Nine Hells, and Elgram, the big three of the Loki Familia and some of the most famous adventurers in the entire world. Of course, he was also in awe of the other members as it was obvious even the weakest of them were leagues stronger than him.
But there was one among them that Bell found that, once he laid eyes on her, he couldn't tear them away: Ais Wallenstein. The Sword Princess of Orario, and one of the strongest adventurers in the entire world. And now, she was also the woman that Bell was now hopelessly in love with.
He watched as she and the rest of her Familia took their seats before getting their drinks before making a toast, what it was about, he wasn't sure. He was too focused on the Sword Princess to hear what the Goddess Loki had said, only vaguely catching that it was about the word dungeon. His focus on her was so great that he didn't even notice Syr and Chiron talking nor did he notice the goddess of his Familia glaring at him in jealousy.
The thought couldn't help but enter his mind that Ais indeed was as beautiful as she was as when she rescued him. It was an odd thought, considering the fact that only a day had passed since that event. The didn't change the fact that there she was, wearing a casual dress and mug of ale in her hand, just as beautiful as she was dressed in her armor with her sword when she had rescued him from Berser- wait a minute.
Bell blinked as a realization suddenly occurred to him. Despite first impressions, Heracles had protected him from the minotaur. That meant that he had actually been in no danger when Ais had "saved" him. The entire reason he had fallen for her was that he had thought she had heroically saved him from a dangerous, unknown monster. So with the realization that that monster hadn't actually been a threat, did that somehow invalidate his feelings for Ais?
No. It didn't.
Though the information lessened some of the impact, to Bell, it didn't change that she had saved him without any hesitation and that her first instinct was to make sure that he was safe. In his eyes, she had acted like one of the heroes that he had grown up hearing stories about.
But as Bell was struggling with the emotional repercussions of that realization, another realization occurred to him: what happened after he had run away.
He didn't really think about it before, having previously just focused on Ais and his newly developed feelings for her, doing his best to keep his mind off of the 'monster'. When he discovered that Heracles was actually a Servant like Chiron, he was too caught up in the ideas of actually interacting with actual heroes from another world to give it too much thought. It had only been an afterthought that he didn't give much consideration before, knowing that it was only natural that one of the strongest members of the Loki Familia would fight the unknown monster, but now that after thought was coming back to haunt him.
"Ugh, Loki." Hestia said in disgust as she caught sight of the other goddess, which was caught by Chiron, not noticing the distress that Bell was in.
"Is something wrong goddess Hestia?" Chiron asked looking over Bell's bowed head to Hestia, seeing her look of disdain at Loki.
"Me and Loki don't mix well, and well… let's just say that seeing her has made me lose my appetite." Hestia said, pushing away her plate of food as if to make her point.
"Hmm," Chiron hummed in thought, as he briefly looked back at the other goddess, who still yet to notice the Hestia Familia trio. "Well then, perhaps it would be best if we head out? If you're not hungry anymore, we don't have much reason to stay and we don't want to risk the two of you making a scene if the two of you don't get along as much as you say."
"Yeah I guess." Hestia said with a small sigh. "I'm sorry, I know this is supposed to be a celebration for you and Berserker joining, but I really can't stomach Loki."
"So does that mean you guys are leaving already?" Syr said with a slight pout, clearly disappointed with how much she actually got to talk to them.
"If it makes you feel better, we more than likely will be coming here every so often." Chiron said to her, causing her pout to disappear. "Though, if you have anything resembling to-go boxes we would appreciate it if you could bring them."
"Well that's good to hear! And I'll be right back then!" Syr said, cheering up at the news that they would be coming back before running off to go grab the requested items.
It was then that Bell suddenly grabbed Chiron's wrist. Chiron had of course noticed that Bell had become somewhat unresponsive after the appearance of the Loki Familia, but didn't want to pry and simply left him alone. Now, however, all though his head was still somewhat downcast, there was a clear look of something akin to panic on his face.
"Bell, is something wrong?" Chiron said, his tone becoming more concerned than Hestia or Bell had heard from him, causing Hestia to notice how Bell was.
"I think… after Berserker saved me from the minotaur, I think he fought Ais Wallenstein!" Bell said in a quiet and urgent tone, causing the color to drain from Hestia's face and Chiron's eyes to widen.
"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?" Chiron asked, although he did nothing physically show the severity of the situation to avoid making a scene, his voice certainly did with how serious he was.
Bell finally looked up to look Chiron dead in the eye, the look in his own showing the certainty that he had in his realization as he nodded.
The implications of what Bell was telling Chiron and Hestia was not missed by either one of them. The Guild was very strict about the laws and punishments when it came to conflict between the different Familias. Plus, the Loki Familia was known as one of the most powerful and influential Familias in the city of Orario. There was little doubt that the Loki Familia could put some major pressure on the tiny Familia if they wanted to, if not completely decimate it economically.
Chiron glanced back at the Loki Familia, clearly trying to think of what to do in this situation.
"Bell, Goddess Hestia, I believe it would be for the best if you two left right now and go back to the Church." he said looking back to Hestia and Bell, who looked back at him in an odd look.
"And what are you going to do?" Bell asked, more than a little concerned about what he was suggesting.
"Once you two are safe, I'll confront the Loki Familia about what happened in the Dungeon." Chiron began before interrupting them as they opened their mouths to object to it. "We are in a precarious situation that needs to be handled carefully. It will only be a matter of time until the Loki Familia finds out about Berserker, and if we deny it, it will be more than enough grounds for them to go to the Guild about it."
"So our only choice is to go to them about it?" Bell asked, understanding what Chiron was getting at, which received a nod from the Archer Servant
"Ok, I get that, but why are you making us run off?" Hestia asked next.
"Consider it a protective measure." Chiron explained quickly. " I don't know what Loki is like in this world, but if she is anything like the one in my world, then her having a violent reaction isn't out of the question. Especially since you two apparently have a bad history with one another. Even if a fight breaking out is extremely unlikely, it is better safe than sorry. Alongside the fact that I am the captain of the familia now, I am a Servant while Bell is my master and you are the goddess keeping this familia together, objectively speaking, I am the most expendable."
Chiron paused briefly before giving the two a small smirk and then continuing "Though that isn't to say you need to be worried about me. As I said before, I'm no slouch in combat, and I'm sure Bell can attest to that."
Bell and Hestia clearly felt a bit better at Chiron's final words, but still looked like they were having some reservations about leaving Chiron behind to deal with the Loki Familia alone.
"Are you sure this is a good idea Chiron?" Bell asked his tone one of concern and worry.
"It's the best option we have, and like I said, the odds of a fight breaking out is incredibly low." Chiron said, putting a hand on Bell's shoulder to comfort him a little more.
Hestia was visibly conflicted as she debated whether or not to do what Chiron told them. It wasn't that she didn't have any faith in Chiron, especially considering what and who he was, but he was still dealing with what some considered to be the strongest Familia in the world and the second strongest at worst.
"...Fine." Hestia said after several seconds of contemplation, causing Chiron and Bell to look at her before she got up to point at Chiron and commanding him "But you better not mess this up or get hurt!"
"Believe me goddess Hestia, I had no intention of either one of those, but I give you my word nonetheless."
Hestia and Bell returned the small smile Chiron gave them, but it was clear that they were still a little unsure about everything. But they didn't say anything else as they got up from their seats before quickly going through the crowd of people, going as fast as possible as to not attract the attention of the Loki Familia as they left. Though, when they made it to the door, Bell would linger there for several seconds longer, looking back at Chiron before looking over to Ais, who was busy talking to her familia to notice him.
Chiron raised a brow as Bell and Hestia disappeared, wondering what that last look toward Ais was about, but wouldn't be able to dwell on it for very long before Syr made her return.
"Here's your che- huh? Where'd Bell go? And that goddess too?" Syr asked at noticing the absence of the two, holding a thin slip of paper, but no to-go boxes.
"Something came up, causing Bell to realize he and Goddess Hestia that they should hurry home." Chiron answered as he took the slip of paper and fishing out the needed amount of valid, having just enough on him from his earlier venture into the Dungeon to make the payment.
Syr took the payment, though she was clearly disappointed that she didn't get to say goodbye to them. After taking the valis, Syr was about to walk away, but Chiron stopped her with a sudden question, "If I may, could I borrow a pencil ?".
"Oh, uh, sure?" Syr said, surprised and slightly confused by the sudden question before reaching into the pocket of her waitress uniform and handing it to Chiron, who took it with a thanks.
With the pencil, Chiron would flip the check over before using the pencil to draw on the back of the thin piece of paper. Syr would watch him in curiosity of what he was doing, leaning over his shoulder slightly in order to see what it was exactly that he was drawing. She would be caught off guard by the level of skill he had at drawing, and as time went on the lines that Chiron drew rapidly began to take form into something that she recognized.
A few minutes later, Chiron finished what he was drawing. He then handed Syr back the pencil that she had given him. "Thank you once again for giving me the pencil."
"It's no problem." Syr said as she took the pencil back, though confusion was still clear in her voice as she tilted her head somewhat. "But if you don't mind me asking, why did you draw- "
Syr was interrupted as there was a sudden surge of activity going on behind her. Looking around her, Chiron saw that the source of it was the Loki Familia had finished their meal and were getting ready to leave.
"I'm sorry Ms. Flova, but it looks like I have to go now." Chiron said before quickly getting up and going after the Loki Familia, leaving Syr confused as he quickly walked away.
" !" Chiron called out to her as he exited the restaurant, catching her attention.
Hearing her name being called out to her, Ais would stop walking and turn to see Chiron heading towards her. She wasn't the only one either, a few other more sober members of the Loki Familia stopped as the name of one of their members was called out randomly. As Chiron closed the distance between them, the Sword Princess would tilt her head in curiosity, though her doll-like facial features wouldn't change much.
"Can I help you?" She asked in her usual tone of voice, though it had a slight tinge of curiosity.
"Yes, sorry for bothering you, but I have a question for you." Chiron said as he held up the check for Ais to take. "Have you seen anything that looks like this?"
Ais would raise a brow at the question as she took the piece of paper, clearly a little confused at the question but didn't ask about it. However, as she looked down to see the image that Chiron had drawn, not even a second had passed before her grip on the paper would suddenly tighten, causing it to crinkle slightly as the look on her face would visibly change from shock and surprise. The sudden change in her usual expression would throw the members of her Familia off guard, causing a few of them to even jump.
"Where have you seen this?!" Ais demanded as her head jerked up toward Chiron, who gave no visible reaction to the sharp tone.
The severity of her tone would cause further confusion in her fellow Familia members, and grabbed the attention of the other Familia members who hadn't noticed the exchange yet, even some bystanders that had been walking nearby in earshot.
"Oi Ais, what's gotten into yo-" Bete began, waking back to see what was going on, only for him to glimpse the drawing she held over her shoulder due to his greater height.
At the sight, the werewolf's expression would quickly warp into what resembled a snarl as he looked up and sent a distrustful glare at Chiron. Bete's reaction would only cause further confusion in the Familia, who could only look to Chiron for some sort of answer as to what this was about
"I'll gladly answer any questions you have." Chiron began, unaffected by the reactions of the two level 5s and maintaining a calm expression "But I think we can all agree that we aren't in the best place to talk about this."
As Chiron finished, he would reach out and point on to the paper which featured an image that, despite only being a sketch, was accurate enough so that there was no question what the subject was: Heracles.
This chapter is a bit on the shorter side. Originally I planned it to be a decent bit longer, but thought it would be better to start the next chapter with the scene that I cut from this one. Plus I have a lot of things going on, mostly due to college.
I've clearly changed a bit already, most notably how Bete wasn't laughing at Bell, because in this version, he never would've ever seen him. And that isn't even mentioning the massive difference in the beginning of the relationship between the Loki and Hestia Familias.