Chapter 1: Realization
"human speaking"
"human thoughts"
"monster/fels speaking/sounds"
"monster/fels thoughts"
2 hours before the spawn of Goliath
Loki Familia's camp
Normal POV
"Okay everyone! now all of us can rest since we're done eating and cleaning the plates that we used... we're going to stay until the antidotes that I ordered Bete to get arrives... for now relax and have a break since it's been a very long journey" Finn ordered every member of the familia.
As soon as they heard the order from their captain, they proceeded to do their things, some of them went back to tent, some of them went to rivera and the others took a bath.
Aki and Alicia on the other hand decided to talk a little since they don't have anything to do in mind.
"Hey Ali... Mind telling me what happened at the 59th floor? it looks like everyone is about to die when all of you came back to the camp at 50th floor... What exactly happened?" Aki asked in curiosity.
"What's with you? usually you sound very happy when the captain orders you to stay and guard the camp at the 50th floor but now it sounds like you're disappointed that you didn't came"
"No I'm not... Just curious of how strong the enemy you fought for Aiz and the others to look like that"
"You'll never believe me even if I told you... I feel so useless even though I'm already a veteran adventurer... It's frustrating... Even Lefiya managed to stand side by side to them, I almost cried when I saw how much progress she made in just a couple of months" Alicia said with a sad look on her face.
The fight with the demi-spirit left different kinds of thoughts to everyone who saw the fight. Some of them got inspired, some of them still can't believe that ridiculous comeback they managed to pull out, and some of them like Alicia started to question themselves.
"That's the reason why I don't go to the deep levels with them, I for sure will start to feel inferior to them because of the huge gap in skills... I don't know how Raul can take it but I also know why the captain was insisting on always bringing him along with them, it's no secret to us since we already saw that side of Raul many times but he have what it takes to be a great commander, compared to me... I'm just a normal cat person and regular level 4 adventurer... The only thing that carries my name through the top is the name Loki Familia... I don't have anything special aside from my cooking skills hehehe..."
"Maybe we should also get some rest since we're all tired from all that happened, see you later Aki"
And with that Alicia went inside of their tent to get some rest.
"Maybe I should do the same as well" and then, Aki also started walking towards her own tent that she's sharing with Line.
Aki POV
As I got closer to the tent, I noticed that Line was practicing her healing magic since I can see the green light coming through the cloth wall of the tent and as I got in, I noticed how focused she was on doing it.
"She looks tired..." "Hey Line, you're using too much mind on it, try to relax a little and remember what Riveria-san said about how your emotions affect your healing magic. Just calm down and remember not to put too much mind on it or it won't have any effect" I reminded her.
"But I can't just calm down after what I saw happened to Bete-san and the others"
"You really like Bete huh...?" I asked her with a deadpan look.
I already know that Bete is not as rude and scum as he act but I just love how Line always defend her crush in front of other people, she may not be as strong willed as Lefiya but when it comes to defending that werewolf, a part of her strong personality comes out.
"I know that he's not really a bad person and just likes to act arrogant all the time but seriously?? there are other better choices than him like..."
"Like who? I completely forgot that the only outstanding male members of our familia is Gareth-san, Captain, Bete and Raul. And I don't know many famous male adventurers outside of our familia other than the Vana Freya and King... There is Phoebus Apollo but I think he swings the other way and Dix of ikelos familia on the other hand always looks like he's about to lose his sanity"
As I was lost in thought on whom to recomend, Line suddenly interrupted me.
"Like whom?" Line asked in curiosity.
At that time, I couldn't come up with an answer because all of the popular guys I know are comepletely impossible. Gareth is way too old and doesn't have any interest in a female from another race, captain looks okay but if Tione finds out that I'm pushing Line towards Finn, she'll kill me in a heart beat and the others are just way too impossible for anyone to handle other than their own deity.
"I don't know... I don't have vast knowledge about the famous male adventurers here in orario but just wait for it, I know someday you'll find someone who'll treasure you more than anyone else, Bete is just not for you and besides he's into Aiz"
As I said my piece, Line took a moment before replying but what she said is comepletely out of what I thought she would say.
"I know that already, I'm nowhere near as beautiful as Aiz and nowhere as strong as she is but I won't give up..! that's the reason why I'm practicing... I want to prove to him that I maybe weak compared to him but I can help him! I can be useful to him!"
I was surprised when I looked at her eyes. It's burning with passion and determination, I've already seen this many times but it still surprises me when she shows this seriousness in her face.
"Alright calm down will you? I'm just teasing you since your eyes looks like it was about to shoot a beam of light because of how much you are focusing on what you're doing" Then a slight giggle escaped from me.
"Mou... By the way we always talk about how I like Bete-san but what about you and Raul? Any development between you two?" suddenly, Line changed the topic of our conversation. A topic that comepletely surprised me.
"HAH!? Raul and me!? What are you thinking? Nothing's going on between me and Raul! What are you talking about!?" I answered her question with complete surprise since I didn't expect this kind of questions coming from her.
"Well it's not just me, everyone in the familia was talking about it since you two are always together. They said that they felt like you two are inseparable and you look good together"
I know that she's not the type of person who loves to listen to gossips but the fact that it reached her and she's asking me this is that everyone already knows it
"Line, there's nothing going on between us... We're always together because we have to, we're both level 4 and raul is next on the line to the captain while I'm on the line of being an executive... but before we end this conversation... MIND TELLING ME WHO STARTED THIS RUMOR...??"
"HIIIHH!!!" Line screamed as I got closer to her.
My blood was literally boiling at this point, seeing how this kind of baseless rumor spread around like a wildfire is pissing me off, I don't care who it is, as long as it's not Riveria-san spreading rumors, I could handle them.
"... ...ia..."
"Say it again? I didn't hear your voice"
"I HEARD IT FROM RIVERIA-SAMA!!"
As soon as Line screamed those words, the person that was mentioned entered our tent.
"What's wrong? I heard Line screaming my name" Riveria said in her usual tone.
"It's nothing don't worry about it! we're just t-talking about s-something" I said very nervously.
I didn't expect the culprit to be Riveria-san, after all, she's the type of person who honors other person's privacy and is easily angered whenever she hears any gossips going on around our familia.
"Stop lying, I know you are hiding something from me. Spill it out"
"Okay... the truth is..."
5 Minutes later.
"So that's it huh? You should've just told me the truth, but it's hard to not misunderstood your relationship with Raul since you look so close to each other. Anyway don't worry, I'll fix this so rest assured" And with a soft apologetic smile directed to me. Riveria-san left the tent.
"Line, I'm gonna go out for a bit. See you later" I smiled at her before leaving out tent.
"since I'm not really that tired, maybe I should go around and find something interesting or maybe I should also take a bath with the others, there is no harm in taking another bath is there?"
As I was comepletely lost in my thoughts, I bumped into someone who's running and the impact was so strong that I landed my head first on the grass.
"Oh sorry Aki! I didn't see you while I was running... You see, I was kind of in a hurry since the girls just finished taking a bath and it's our boys' turn now, sorry again!"
And with that, Raul dashed off to the direction of the river located in the woods behind our camp
"Haaaah... Maybe I should just go back to the tent since I can't take a bath anymore... Maybe later at the night, I'll just bring someone in case any monster appears..."
"maybe I should just practice my sword skills since it's been a while since I've had a real fight, I might get rusty if this continues"
With that in mind, I went to our tent first to inform my friend Line where they could find me in case someone asks where I am, and after that I went to the grass field near the entrance of the 18th floor.
Current time
Normal POV
18th floor entrance
"Hn!!"
SHING
Aki was currently practicing with her sword Regal Force, it looks like a normal short sword at first glance but it's a very sharp sword that could cut through the air, meaning the force of her swings are not reduced because the air drag wasn't affecting it and it can slice through almost any monster but the draw back of this is the blade is thinner than the normal sword so the durability isn't that high but still it's a very good weapon with a very high tier blade durability of a mid tier.
She's about to go back to the camp since she already had a good time practicing and was about to take a bath when she suddenly heard the loud familiar voice of the Goliath as if it was attacking someone.
And then a loud noise echoed from the entrance of the 18th floor.
BOOM
"!!"
"what was that!?"
As soon as she opens her eyes, she saw a white haired human lying on the grass covered in wounds and another two who looked unconcious from either mind down or fatigue.
"Hey! Are you guys alright!? can you stand up!?" Aki asked the boy who looks like he's about to lose conciousness as well.
"Please... Save my comrades..." and with that, the white haird human in front of her passed out as well.
Aki was about to carry the three of them back to their base camp when she saw Aiz and Riveria heading towards her with a completely worried face and when they reached her location, Riveria was the first to speak since she's worried about their injuries.
"Aki! What happened to them? how are they?" Riveria asked her fellow member while checking up on the adventurer at her back but as soon as she saw who's the white haired human was, her face went pale and she started to panick a bit.
"Aiz! stop spacing out! we need to carry them back to the camp! they're all covered in wounds and the two of them are unconcious because of mind down and the pallum girl was out of stamina! carry the red haired man while we carry the other two!"
Aiz stood there for a moment before obeying her mother figure's order, not being able to confirm her suspicion of who the white haird adventurer who's clad in salamander wool was.
"Aki, I'll carry that boy"
"It's okay Riveria-san, I can carry him" Aki said while giving Riveria a reassuring smile.
nod "Okay let's hurry back so we can treat that boy again" Riveria said while grabbing the unconcious pallum girl.
After giving Riveria the other adventurer, they started to follow Aiz's trail back to the camp to treat the fallen adventurers.
Loki Familia camp
"Finn. Do we have another tent?"
Aiz was the first to arrive at the camp, while carrying the unconcious man behind her, she rushed to Finn's tent to ask for another tent.
"Why are you here already? Did you left Riveria? And yes we do, I'll set it up with Raul so for now you can lie him at my bed before Riveria arrives" Finn then left the tent and started setting up the tent.
Riveria and Aki then arrived and also went straight to their captain's tent to treat the wounded adventurers.
"What are you doing? I just finished treating you a few days earlier and now here you are covered in wounds again... Are you trying to kill yourself? Bell Cranel...!?" Riveria said loudly while trying to heal his wounds.
As soon as she said his name, all eyes of those who went to the 59th floor, save for Bete who's currently not present went straight to their direction, and that picked Aki's curiousity.
"Umm--" but before she could ask, Riveria interrupted her.
"Ask me later, please let me focus first on healing him... His injuries are not life threatening but it's close to that, and also please grab me 3 mind potions since both Bell and his red haired companion suffered from mind down"
"Alright but please answer my questions later... please Riveria-san?"
"Ofcourse... As soon as I finish this" Riveria then gave her a very gentle smile.
"Okay"
"AKII!! AIZ!! THE TENT IS READY! YOU CAN MOVE THEM HERE!"
"Thanks Raul! Riveria-san, how about you continue treating them there? since there are a lots of stuff here"
"Alright, Let's go Aiz, Aki" Riveria ordered them as they nod in unison
Aki's POV.
2 hours later.
Inside Bell's the tent.
As soon as Riveria-san finished the treatment they needed, she started to answer my questions as to why are they so concerned about this white haired boy and why does it sound like they've treated him before.
It turns out that this boy that's currently resting his head on my lap was the level 1 Tiona mentioned on the way to the 50th floor, They said that he defeated an irregular minotaur at the 9th floor, and He's also the one we saw on Aiz's back when we entered the 3rd floor with Gareth-san and the other smiths, But what I didn't expect is that how he managed to do that and to arrive here in just a few days, It wouldn't be impossible if he's a level 2 but according to them, he's still a rookie level 1 adventurer who got caught in the minotaur incident we had on our earlier failed expedition.
"It feels like he's connected to our familia for some reason, he always gets involved to us everytime... well I think it's a little early to say that but this is already the 3rd time this happened"
As I continue to look at his face, I reached out for his face and hair, It's a little bit too long since it's almost covering his eyes but it somehow suits him.
I didn't notice but my hands suddenly began to pet him, and for some reason, it feels so relaxing like petting a little rabbit, and as I move my hands to his cheeks, his eyes moved, he's about to wake up.
"Umm... Why am I at the Hostess of fertility? I thought I was being attacked by the Goliath before I reached the 18th floor..." He said to himself.
And then, I saw the color of his eyes. He really looks like a rabbit with those white hair and red ruby eyes. He's so cute.
"Chloe-san?"
"Chloe? who's that? I don't know who it is but I think I should introduce myself first"
"I'm sorry but my name is Anakitty but you can call me Aki if you want" I smiled at him after introducing my self.
It looks like he's still half asleep because as soon as he heard my name, his eyes opened wide in realization that I'm not the person he thought I was.
"I-I'm sorry!! Uwah!!"
"Hey are you alright!? don't move too much since you're still recovering from mind down"
It looks like his head is throbbing in pain so I slowly reached out for it and gently carresed it to help him ease the pain.
"There there, you feeling better now?"
"Yes... Thank you very much..." He answered me while slowly blushing.
"Okay you are currently inside one of Loki familia's tents here at the 18th floor, rest here for a little bit and I'll take you to captain since he ordered me to bring you to his tent a couple of minutes after you wake up to ensure that you've recovered enough, and also your allies are doing fine, they are just sleeping" I said as I pointed towards his left side.
"Thank goodness both Lili and Welf are alright..." He sighed in relief.
And then a question suddenly popped up to my mind and since we're still resting here for a bit, I think it's a good thing to ask since I don't know anything about him.
"Bell"
"Um.. How did you know my name? Aki-san?" He asked me while tilting his head.
He looks like a little brother here and I'm her big sister. He looks so adorable, it feels like he's not an adventurer at all.
"Well you're quite famous in our familia after all, since your victory against the irregular minotaur, everyone's been talking a lot about you especially the executives"
"Is that so... Oh I forgot to ask! Can I go see Aiz-san first before we go and see your captain? I'm quite nervous to go there since I don't know anyone except her"
"What? Not happy that I'm the one accompanying you? You're the worst. HMPH!"
I decided to tease him a little bit since we still have some time left and the captain said I should let him rest as long as possible.
"I'm sorry but that's not what I meant! It's just that whenever I get too close to a pretty girl like you, I get so nervous that I don't know what to do next"
His answer caught me comepletely off guard but I didn't let it show on my face since that would be embarassing since I'm the one who started it.
"Heehh?? You didn't look like one but you're actually a smooth-talker huh?" I teased him again with a smug look on my face but again, he threw me again off guard.
"I'm not a smooth-talker... I'm just saying the truth since you look so cute and attractive..." Bell said weakly while looking straight into my eyes.
And because of that I decided to stop my teasing before he comepletely turn the table on me.
"Okay you got me there, now let's head out and find Aiz. You want to see her right? Let's go" I said as I stood up and opened the tent's cover.
"This could be a very long and interesting day for me"
A/N: AAAAAAND!!!! That's it for this chapter... thanks for reading this shit and I hope you like it! I will be updating this story every week so stay tuned for the next chapter! And thanks for the support guys! Stay safe and stay indoors!
thanks for the reviews and because of you guys, I decided to update earlier.
EDIT: As you can see at my note on the prologue... I said "something interesting will happen at the next chapter" but I couldn't bring it here as you can see because I'm scared of stretching this chapter too much so maybe in chapter 2 or 3 will bring that out and don't worry! I've been planning that shit out the first time I saw the flaw between Aiz and Bell... and now I'm going to put it into good use.
thanks for the suppory guys! and if you want to stay updated to when my next chapter comes out then follow me on twitter @eyankarlos8 and you will see my name there "Ian Carlos". That's my real name...
I Haven't uploaded anything there aside from game related stuff that will give you rewards if you upload it so now I'm going to give you some hints about the next chapter and when will it come out.