"Stop pushing me". Timer growled as an arm dragged him by the shoulders through the streets of Orario. His brother Bell hadn't stopped smiling since they left Lili.
With overflowing joy Bell pushed Timer. "I'm excited! You haven't eaten with us in days." Bell smiled happily. "Let's go to Kami-sama's stall. She will be happy if we buy something from her and come back to her."
The calmer brother rolled his eyes, 'I guess he's right.' He thought as he hid a smile of his own.
Bell turned his head to where they left Lili. "Hey brother, do you think Lili will be fine alone, she didn't want to eat with us."
Timer turned his head to look at where they had been, an itch ravaging the white-haired man. This uneasy feeling was unpleasant.
"Bell… how about we go the other way today, I want to stop by the bar to pick something up." It was a lie, but she wanted to go back to the flirtation where they left Liliruca.
"That? "I guess we can wait for the goddess at home."
"Thank you for understanding, let's go."
With that, the brothers turned around.
"Timer…" He tried to say before his brother started walking quickly.
"And by the way, if we find Liliruca we will force her to eat with us"
Bell smiled nervously as he walked. "I think you're bullying her, Hehehe but you're worrying about her, Hehehe. I told you you would like her."
Timer sighed, "It's obvious, she is our support now. And as long as she doesn't do anything else, nothing will happen.
"I'm just glad they get along."
Timer rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I guess she's not that bad." The twin increased the speed of his steps.
Bell and Timer looked at scattered coins before entering an alley. They both froze when suddenly, they heard a faint moan and found Lili lying on the ground, with a black eye and her clothes torn.
"Lili! What happened?" Bell exclaimed with concern, running to her side, the little girl was bordering on unconsciousness.
"M-Mr-Bell, are you real?" Lili murmured as everything went dark.
The timer remained silent as he examined everything - the bruises, the wounds on his body, and the coins lying on the ground. His sensitive ears picked up laughter not far away.
"Bell… give me your knife."
"That- "
"Give me your knife. Take care of Liliruca. Do not come."
Bell, unconsciously lowered his head and did as he was told, hesitantly handed over the black knife that the goddess gave him. This tone of voice was one I hadn't heard in many years.
Timer gripped the knife tightly, it still felt burning in his hand. "No matter what happened, we'll fix it," Timer's eyes turned cold, his gaze darkening as he walked towards the noise. "Take care of her, I'll take care of those men."
Bell nodded and took care of Lili as Timer advanced towards the thugs, his face completely blank.
Two alleys later, the men stopped as he approached, but soon began to laugh.
"What do we have here? A little idiot hero has a death wish?" one of them mocked.
Timer was unfazed. "You will return the money, if you do so you can leave. Only warning."
The bullies laughed even louder, thinking they could intimidate Timer. "Wow, look how his arm is shaking, he's scared shitless," said another, approaching.
He confidently put a razor to Timer's cheek, using enough force a trickle of blood fell from Timer's cheek.
"If that's how you want to proceed... I understand."
A disgusting noise was heard as 3 fingers fell to the ground.
"Aaaaahhhh! My hand! My hand you damn bastard!"
In the dark alley, the white-haired man's eyes shone like a demon's, his pupils became vertical. The eyes of a predator roaming their bodies. With a knife in each hand, his gaze turned cold.
"You bastard! You don't know who you mess with, we will track you down, we will look for your god!"
That was, the worst choice of words possible.
For a second his eyes shone brighter. "Give me the money and leave right now, this is my last warning."
The thugs laughed even louder, "You attacked treacherously, damn it, let's see if you can do it again." They all mocked Timer's warning, one of them ran trying to hit him, but Timer moved nimbly dodging the blow and counterattacked with a quick thrust of his knife that skewered the man's arm.
"Hey?". The man realized the damage when a waterfall of blood came from his arm.
Crimson red erupted in the alley once more as Timer not only content with that dragged the blade of the knife all the way into his hand.
"Aaaaahhhh H-HURTS! Canoe, do something!" That man writhed on the ground.
Timer remained silent. "No more chances," he said in a calm voice.
The leader of the bullies, Canoe Belway, enraged by the humiliation of his partner, attacked Timer with a fierce blow. But Timer nimbly dodged the attack again and again.
"Enough game," Timer said coldly. "I wanted the money, but you didn't want to save yourselves."
The other two thugs, afraid of this red-eyed demon, took a step back, quickly trying to run. But Timer didn't give them a chance. With impressive speed he blurred from where he was, the white-haired man first grabbed the head of one of them, and then smashed it against his knee.
One body fell silent while the other man began to feel the lack of air in his lungs before falling to his knees gasping. Without him realizing it, a blow had sent him to the ground.
Timer looked at them on the ground, he was still missing one, but he had to finish these two.
"You took Lili's money, I'm getting it back. You can leave now as you are and with potions they can heal completely, but, these fingers, you won't be able to have them again" Timer stomped his foot, crushing the flesh under his foot that had previously fallen.
With the fight already decided in favor of Timer, the boss of the thugs, Canoe Belway, retreated in fear as he saw his defeated companions on the ground.
Timer tightened his grip on the handles of his knives, advancing with an implacable gaze towards Canoe. "It's not fun, is it?" he declared in an icy voice. "Being humiliated by someone stronger than you."
Canoe tried to act brave, although his pale, sweaty face betrayed his fear. "Ha! Are you doing this for the dwarf? That thing belongs to my family, the Soma family owns it! What are you two going to do? You idiots don't know what you're getting into. We can go back in any time with reinforcements!"
The air was filled with a tense aura as Timer lunged at Canoe, deftly dodging a clumsy blow that the thug tried to throw at him. Quickly, Timer lashed out in one fluid, precise motion, impaling Canoe's shoulder with one of his knives and stabbing it into the wall. A cry of pain escaped Canoe's mouth before being silenced by a blow to the face.
Timer looked at Canoe Belway like he was trash. "Pathetic". The knocks were heard in that alley. Each blow of her fists caused Canoe to moan. But Timer didn't stop there, he wanted Canoe to feel pain.
"I could cut off a hand, an arm or a leg and you would still need revenge. Pathetic beings like you are like that."
Canoe groaned in pain, but tried to maintain his brave façade. "You don't scare me, brat," he drawled. "You'll see what happens when my family finds out about this."
Without waiting any longer, Timer began to hit Canoe again and again, with quick and accurate fists that landed hard on his face. The blows were relentless, causing Canoe to bleed and wail in pain.
"Is it enough for you?
Canoe whimpered, unable to maintain the brave façade he had tried to maintain. "Please...now...stop it," he pleaded, his voice cracking with pain.
Timer used the other knife to stab the other shoulder right in the space below the collarbone.
"Argh! No more, please!"
"Unfortunately for you, I want to prevent this from happening again. So I'm going to be forceful." Timer said with an icy voice, while launching an accurate kick at Canoe's knee. A sickening sound was heard as his leg bent in an unnatural direction. "Say you will never touch Liliruca again."
"Aaaahhh! Help me! Whoever!".
Timer ignored her plea and crouched down, holding one of his knives in front of Canoe's face. "You are an ordinary guy who has stagnated, I wonder how many years you have been at Lv1, you probably got tired, found that it was difficult to advance and in the end, unable to level up, you took advantage of others who were weaker than you." "It was an easier way to make a living."
With a swift motion, Timer slashed Canoe's cheek with Canoe's own weapon, leaving a trail of blood. Canoe screamed and tried to move away, but Timer held him tightly. "I wonder if this will leave a scar... Well, let's find out."
"H-Hey, what- what are you doing."
From his pocket, Timer took out a flask and put it in Canoe's mouth. The man's body began to heal, the blows, the leg and finally, the cuts. Unfortunately for Canoe, the knives that kept him skewered were never removed, causing him to heal with the knives still stuck.
"Y-you, you won't go to..."
"Good, there is no scar. I'll have to start over, although this time I'll use one of mine."
Timer abruptly pulled out one of the knives.
"Aaargh!"
.
.
.
As Timer walked back, he noticed how hot Bell's knife is, once again he is being rejected, showing a softer expression he put the knife in his bag. "I'm sorry ". He said looking down at the bag. For some reason the knife rejected him, although he could understand it, having Bell as its owner and then being used by his hands, there is certainly a change.
"I'm sorry, but I'm not Bell." She said towards the bag.
.
.
.
Bell looked towards the back of the alley where Timer was walking, his clothes were covered in blood, there was no sign of damage other than a small cut on his cheek, Sould Bound also didn't share anything about the damage other than the pain in his knuckles, just the fury received from his communication channel.
"You're always like this, brother." He muttered to himself. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly to which he received a nod from Timer. Bell turned her attention from him to the girl in his arms. "Lili. "We won't let anyone hurt you," Bell stated determinedly, as Timer nodded in agreement.
Lili, although still scared and on the verge of unconsciousness, gave them a small smile. "Thank you...
Timer gave Bell's shoulder a squeeze. "Come with us Liliruca. "Our goddess would appreciate the company."
Lili nodded, with tears in her eyes. "Thank you... thank you, Mr. Bell, Mr. Timer."
Lili hugged them tightly, grateful for their support. "Thank you for being here," she whispered before falling unconscious.
Bell and Timer looked at each other before sighing. "If we didn't come back she would be lying here." Bell muttered with frustration written all over her face.
Timer sighed and put a hand on his shoulder "I know, let's go home, Bell. Can you carry her alone?"
Bell smiled slightly as he lifted her into his arms, "Don't worry, she's so small she doesn't weigh anything."
They fell into a calm silence, Timer used to like the moments where they didn't say anything and were simply together, and at some point he knew how to appreciate them too.
Bell looked up at the sky, the sun had long since set. Bell was proud to say that he knew his brother better than anyone in this world. His brother liked silence, he liked furry animals and although he denied it, he was also attracted to cat girls, his brother also liked starry nights... They were twins, they were similar, but at the same time they were totally different, at least I never expected to be as amazing as Tim. His brother was smart, his brother was talented, whatever fell into his hand meant success.
"I don't understand how you can be so useless."
Timer used to be like that when they were little.
Being second in everything was something he tried again and again. Timer is the kind of person who only needs once to get things done. Being the best at something, Bell didn't know that feeling, but at the same time it wasn't something he gave any importance to.
At some point, when they were 7 years old, her attitude changed, she stopped treating him like he was useless and started supporting him. 'Even if it takes me longer, he always waits for me.' His brother explained things to him when he didn't understand or helped him with things he couldn't do. He was always there when something went wrong. So, even if he didn't know hereuel feeling of being the best, I felt like I didn't need it.
Until there was an occasion where it was
'Timer faced a Silverback and so did I. But only I won that fight'
There are things to keep in mind like Bell had the help of the upgrade or the weapon given by his goddess made him win. But the point was clear, Timer was the one who lost that fight. And... Bell felt, strange, perhaps strange was an understatement.
He was not especially happy nor sad, it was his brother who he lost and had been hurt for taking care of a girl who was in danger. To be honest, his admiration could only grow more.
Timer didn't take it that way, he saw it as a weakness and asked Ryuu-san, who used to be an adventurer, to help him improve.
And boy, there was improvement. Bell had been in the dungeon twice as long, he didn't have to work at the Bar and most of the time he was fighting alone until he met Lili.
But today... his brother had made everything look so easy. He moved like a veteran adventurer.
Bell wanted with all his heart to be a hero, he longed to surpass Aiz Wallenstein and have enough courage to declare himself... But his greatest desire was...
'Not to be a burden on my brother.'
Therefore, he would become stronger, grow, and become someone powerful. So that Timer would recognize him.
"Guys!... You brought a girl into the family!"
Bell smiled as he saw his goddess waiting for them at the entrance.
.
.
.
Lili was resting on the bed, right there Hestia sat looking at the twins. Timer used his futon and lay down, Bell sat on the couch.
"So, we can join her to the family!?" Hestia asked excitedly, "This is incredible, with her all those sinful taunts towards me will stop."
Timer raised an eyebrow at her comment, but shook his head. "I can't say for sure, in the end it's her decision." Timer made the point, she could always say no.
Hestia shook her head and raised an accusing finger. "Don't be pessimistic, Timer-kun! She has no reason to refuse."
Bell and Timer turned their gazes.
"Wait! If she doesn't want to stay it must be your fault. You bullied her right? Tell me, you can't fool a god."
Timer declined to respond.
"Bell-kun, you tell me, what your brother did to her." Hestia walked over and started shaking him.
The white-haired man raised his hands trying to defend himself. "Let go of me, please! I will tell".
"Hmm" Timer complained, looking at the albino with accusatory eyes.
"Or maybe not…" Bell looked away as well.
Hestia scowled at them both, "It doesn't matter, I can always ask this girl when she wakes up, most importantly…updates!"
.
.
.
Silence reigned in the room for several minutes as 3 pairs of eyes stared in shock at the sheet in front of them.
"Wow…
"Wow is not enough, wow is definitely an understatement, something is weird Bell."
"But this is…"
"Hestia-Sama, is there something you are not telling us?" Timer asked.
Timer focused his eyes on the goddess who was petrified with her hands on the status sheet.
xxx
Bell update and subsequent addition of Timer.
Lv. 1
Race: Human
Age:14 years
•Strength: D 509 - C 702 - B 730
•Resistance: F 394 - E 428 - B 703
•Dexterity: D 538 - B 733 - A 899
•Agility: C 621 - A 808 - A 850
•Magic: I0
Xxx
The goddess could only whisper. "Statistics aren't supposed to go up that fast."
"Excuse me, Hestia-Sama. "I didn't hear what you said."
"Goddess?" Bell looked at her with worried eyes.
For some reason Timer expected a cry of frustration, when the little goddess's shoulders drooped and her eyes filled with tears she didn't know what to do.
'I don't understand'. Timer thought.
Bell on the other hand understood what was happening. "We will not leave, goddess. Even if a god proposed us to go with him, even if they offer us money or fame, we are the Hestia family."
"I know". Hestia smiled weakly. "But I almost wish they did, they're… too good to be in such a small family."
"But- "
"Let me finish Bell-kun." Hestia smiled lovingly at her children. "You would shine much more in a family like the one in the table or Freya, look at this status sheet, not a month has passed since you are my children and you are just 1 point away from taking a statistic to rank S, same rank that is impossible to reach, but you did it. I feel like they are wasting themselves on me."
Timer snorted before shaking his head. "I want this to be the last time we have this conversation, we're not going anywhere. Bell and I will never go to a place where they would only let us enter because it suits them, weeks ago in the eyes of other gods we were worthless. We are not different now, we are the same Cranel brothers."
"Goddess, please don't say that again. It feels like you don't want us with you." Bell said smiling weakly.
"No never!" Hestia shook her head vigorously before calming down. "I did not say that."
"Then please don't say things like that anymore." Bell smiled at her to which she smiled back.
"I am fine".
Timer mentally let out a sigh, but now something else was on his mind. "Changing the subject and getting to what is truly important. Why are our stats going up so much? It is impossible for us to be able to increase more than 50 points in each update, weeks ago Sould Bound made sense, Bell and I added our statistics, but a normal increase, at most we would make 30 points between the two of us and that was what it was in a statistic. El Cranel looked at the goddess with curiosity.
Hestia didn't look surprised. But her face betrayed nervousness.
Hestia gulped, hesitating whether to tell them or not. "Don't know". She wanted to tell them, of course she was going to do it just that it wasn't time yet, she had to wait for them to become strong enough so that other families couldn't bother them.
"That sounded like a question."
"Tim, don't be rude." Bell faced.
Timer looked into her eyes noticing the doubt in her. "Hestia-sama, can't you say it?"
"…"
"I see" Timer looked at the ceiling for a moment, Sould Bound was a cheat ability, but she wasn't able to do this as far as she knew… it must be something else, she thinks others could steal from us. She's afraid that other gods will find out about Sould Bound but even she doesn't tell us why the growth isn't so fast... I see.
"Hestia-Sama, I have a theory. We probably never understood Sould Bound, maybe the upgrades don't just add my and Bell's stats, but double it before adding them, what I mean is that when one of us upgrades the skill it already comes with our stats added, and If we do it again they double.
"That makes sense, Tim. No wonder we didn't notice that at first, it was because we didn't kill enough monsters."
"Y-yes, that must be it." Hestia said hesitate.
'You don't have to worry Hestia-Sama, I have seen through everything, the gods are immune to lies, if someone asked us about an ability that lets us level up faster we would be unable to avoid the question, or so At least Bell couldn't avoid a god's lie detector. I understand now, if any family found out they would try to take us, for the moment Bell doesn't need to know about this. Not until we are strong enough to withstand any family's attacks.' Timer turned his gaze to the ceiling. 'I just have to discover what the skill is that she doesn't tell us, not in all the updates we have raised the same thing, therefore, it is not a predetermined raise, it must be anchored to an action or, in other words, a thought. And I'll find out, one way or another,
"Huh?" A groan diverted everyone's attention.
"Lili, you woke up!" Bell shouted happily.
Hestia shook her head to put on a presentable smile, this was the time to make a good first impression. "Welcome to the Hestia Family, little Hobbit."
"Am I at your house, Mr. Bell?"
"Yeah"
"I see, I have to go quickly, thank you very much for everything." When Lili was about to run towards the door, Timer's hand fell heavily on her shoulder.
"Calm down, you don't have to worry about the Soma family, I've already taken care of that." Timer
"W-what do you mean?"
"I mean exactly what I said." Timer cut in with a dry tone, "I already took care of that."
"Hey, Timer-kun, you're scaring her." The goddess smiled sweetly at Lili. "You can stay here, it's not very big, but it's comfortable. Of course, if you want."
"They are going to come back"
"I have already warned you, if you show your face in front of me again, well… who knows if I will be able to calm down enough. And here, I told you before and I'll say it again, you deserve this." "He," she said, putting two balls full of money in his hand.
"You're not going to kill anyone, brother," Bell said from the back.
"He talked more about public humiliation and the occasional cut, but of course, Bell."
Lili looked strange, to be honest she was a little scared, this place was unknown to her. She knew that Mr. Timer would be mostly kind if Mr. Bell was there. And to be honest with herself, when she saw them fighting she never expected that she would belong to a new family.
'Geniuses, only that can be the word and the goddess...' The first thing he noticed about the goddess was her great... presence, yes, presence. She shook her head to refocus, her money was recovered, she instantly bowed. "Thank you very much, Lili doesn't know how to pay you"
"I do, pagans staying with us-" Timer was hit on the head by Hestia who had an angry expression.
"I told you to stop bullying her, Timer-kun." "He said before looking at the girl. "What do you say, will you stay at least today?" He asked her kindly. "Eat with mostros at least, food tastes better with company, maybe Timer-Kun is an unkind tsundere, but he is good and Bell is really nice."
"Listen to that, I don't know what it means, but it wasn't a compliment."
"I... accept" If only for today, he would like to breathe with them in this familiar environment.
.
.
.
Swords clashed again and again.
"You get better with every attack, Cranel-San. It's time for the difficulty to start increasing."
"I-I can barely keep up with you."
Timer saw a flash in his periphery, a crash as fast as sound. 'I can't dodge it!' Using both of his arms he covered his chest to cushion the impact as much as possible.
Boom!
A kick collided with his feeble attempt at a block, his arms taking the damage first, then his chest followed. It was like a sledgehammer hitting a defenseless animal. Similar to the attack of a bear crashing into a man.
One of the walls cracked when Timer's body crashed
'I went too far.' Ryuu could only watch as she slowly stood up. 'No, I should have added more strength. People like him are the ones who don't stop until they fall unconscious.'
"Every moment that passes I see myself more and more in you, Cranel-San. The way you take my moves and add them to yours continues to fascinate me, if only you were a couple of levels higher you could use them to their full power."
"I know," he muttered as he climbed out of the wall.
"Cranel-San, you are fighting very well today. I would dare say that you are currently the strongest level 1 in Orario…" Ryuu looked at him before sighing. "Just… it's too fast, you're a genius, but your stats shouldn't allow you to move like you do. Which leads me to ask you, how are your stats now?"
All things considered, Timer hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. Ryuu was his teacher, if there was anyone who deserved to know it was her.
"Recently around A and B."
Ryuu's eyes looked at the boy in bewilderment, "That makes sense considering your ability. But how is it possible that he advances so quickly? Orario is a little behind with respect to the excellence gained by the monsters in the dungeon with respect to The Cell and Laberynth. How are the statistics of his brother, Cranel-San? "
Timer grimaced as he thought about whether to tell her or not, but in the end he spoke: "Very similar, almost identical."
"Cranel-San, I'm not a fan of lies, but, you should try telling your goddess that when the time for leveling up comes, not to announce both of you."
"…I think I understand why and it is understandable." Two rookies, who have only been there for a few weeks, managed to advance what took others years. 'I was right, Bell must not know about the ability Hestia-sama is hiding from us.'
"Hey, Ryuu-San."
"Yeah".
"You mentioned that in Orario we collect less excelia than in the other dungeons, have you ever been to one of them?"
Ryuu walked towards the center of the arena. "To be honest, I've only heard Chloe's stories about The Cell."
Timer followed her slowly, his chest still hurting like never before. "I remember you told me that she was Lv5."
Ryuu nodded, "It is, she and Lunoire are strong, very strong. But be careful talking about it Cranel-San, it is not a pleasant experience in The Empire. The monsters there may be a third more than Excelia, but the death rate is almost double that of Orario, not to mention the perpetual war they have had with Altena for 34 years."
Timer raised his head looking at the ceiling, "If that's so, why aren't we involved in that conflict. "I have never heard of attacks on Orario in the history books."
At his question Ryuu's eyes darkened for a moment, it was only a second, but enough to notice it. Ryuu was silent for a moment before speaking, "Orario used to act as an ambassador of peace between the entire continent, it's not a joke about him being located in the center of the world, he is. But with the fall of the Zeus and Hera family political power was notably lost, the Loki and Freya families quickly tried to recreate the system, but it was useless, the damage had already been done. We have never been invaded thanks to the fact that the Loki and Freya families always emerged triumphant in the border battles, it also helps that the clement queen and the high thinker never attacked Orario directly.
"Queen clement and the high thinker, my guild advisor once mentioned them. Who are those two, are they military leaders or frontline soldiers?" Timer questioned their names, someone with the name of high thinker could only be a strategist.
"Both". Ryuu swung his sword at Timer once more. "What the High Thinker lacks in power he makes up for with the greatest tactical intellect seen in this era, which is why those of the Empire have resisted the powerful magical attacks of those of Alterna and their leader the queen. gracious". Each of Ryuu's attacks was intercepted by Timer, little by little the elf used more power in his blows.
Timer resisted the blows with difficulty. 'She talks and fights at the same time as if it were nothing! I feel like every time she caught up with her she gets stronger, so this is the difference in level, it's not something that can be achieved with technique.'
Ryuu blurred in front of him. Timer widened his eyes in surprise before attacking backwards, the result of him hitting the empty air.
"Argh!"
Timer's body was sent flying and replaced by Ryuu's, who was with his leg extended.
"But, to tell the truth. She is the one you should be most careful with, no one knows exactly her abilities, but it is believed that she is capable of knowing exactly the number of her enemies and allies just by putting her hand on the ground."
Timer stood up gasping. "T-that would be good in war, how is it that the high thinker has been able to hold out so much against someone who knows exactly the positions of the rival army." The white-haired man walked slowly towards the center of the garden again.
"We don't know, the high thinker and the merciful queen cancel each other out. There has been a stalemate for years." Ryuu motioned to Timer to let him know that it was enough, instantly the twin fell to the ground gasping.
"But hasn't Orario tried to take sides on either side?"
"Uranos is the god in charge of the guild, his orders indicate that Orario will remain neutral unless there is an attack against the city. If any god wishes, he can leave, but he will no longer be part of or be able to use his name as an ally of Orario."
"I see... Ryuu, you told me that Orario has the dungeon where you gain the least excellence, how come none of the other nations have tried to attack us."
Ryuu half smiled at that, "Because even when the Hera and Zeus family no longer exists, it would be stupid to lose the war by trying to attack us. They may gain more excellence than us, but, it also means that the monsters are stronger therefore the mortality rate is much higher. Their army is the equivalent of ours in numbers.
Timer cocked his head curiously, "I don't see a world where quantity trumps quality."
Ryuu nodded in agreement. "There is no one, either of them, whether the empire or Altena, can defeat us, but it would cost them the war, we could lose, but Orario will not fall easily, we will condemn whoever invades us. The fall of Orario is the fall of the invader."
"I understand".
"Now then," Ryuu put himself on guard. "I've realized something, Cranel-San, he never counterattacks with the intention of killing, the times he returns my attacks they always slow down in some way or end up losing the power they should have" Ryuu moved, he started walking around him in circles, then slowly accelerating until it was impossible to see, it was showing itself at speeds it had not shown until now. "A genius should not be arrogant, Cranel-San. His attacks, no matter how ingenious they are, are not going to hurt me enough, it is simply the difference in level."
Like a bolt of lightning, the blow was instantaneous.
Timer found himself with knives blocking the front, but despite his defense, a leg protruded from his stomach. 'W-when-'. The pain took a second to take effect, he had already received these blows, perhaps never at this speed, but nevertheless Ryuu's kicks always carried that devastating touch.
'Ha, Ryuu-San's kicks always- *cough*Haaa. *cough* 'Timer writhed on the floor, his hand going straight to his mouth to cover his gagging. 'My nose smells like rust, something wants to come out, it tastes salty... *cough*'.
Red.
Blood burst from his mouth. A hand held his shoulder, with his face always serious, Ryuu patted him on the back and then forced him to drink the liquid from a bottle.
"Baby, this will help. I broke an organ, there will be no problem with this." Ryuu little by little made him drink the bottle, his face regained color slightly and the retching subsided. "I hit him with the average strength of someone at level 3, this is the result, what I want you to understand with this is my superiority, his blows have incredible grace and technique, but they are still level 1."
"I-I can see it."
"From today I will continue to unleash these blows occasionally if you stop fighting at full strength, as I said: Geniuses should not be self-centered, Cranel-san."
Timer nodded awkwardly.
Ryuu nodded, "Okay, that's all for today." The girl looked him over from head to toe, then she leaned down and touched her leather armor. "This is inappropriate."
"That?" He muttered blankly.
"An adventurer who has his stats in A and B cannot have this protection…" Ryuu said.
"Yes I know. Bell told me that he would take me to the tower of Babel to find some armor, but he forgot."
"I imagine they took his brother to the rookie area." Ryuu frowned and his nose twitched.
Timer found that a little cute. He almost compared it to a squirrel.
"That can be very dangerous, I would say that it is like roulette where you cannot guarantee what they sell you. "I don't recommend going there."
"I understand, Ryuu-San, but I don't have the money to buy something expensive. My debt takes up half my salary and the other part goes to the family account so I don't have much." Timer supposed that it didn't matter much if he just sent Bell to buy one for himself, Bell was always very lucky, he I would fix them one way or another.
"I see," Ryuu continued to look at the leather armor, he frowned again. "What will you do today, Cranel-San."
"Today I was supposed to go help at the bar and my lessons with Mama Mia." Timer said.
"Well, today I will take you to a place where you can get decent equipment, that is where I usually take my armor to be repaired."
Timer cocked his head in confusion. "What armor." The albino had never seen her in armor, whenever they trained with her she was in her adventurer's clothes and her flower-shaped hood.
"All my clothing was designed to be resistant to blows and cuts, it's like armor, but the mobility is much better."
"I understand, but I'm afraid I have to say no, something this good is probably out of my budget."
Ryuu shook his head, "That would be normally, but they owe me a favor."
Timer quickly shook his head understanding what he meant, "I refuse, I'm already taking advantage of your kindness and time with training, I can't accept you giving me the armor."
"It's quite the opposite, I can't allow someone under my wing to go so unprotected through the dungeon" She replied.
"I refuse anyway, I already owe this Bar a lot. I don't know how to repay what they are doing for me."
"My honor as an elf rejects your rejection, Cranel-san. You are my student."
Timer grimaced, receiving favors was a habit of Bell's. He couldn't accept something like that... "I, I owe you a favor, Master-Ryuu. If you ever find yourself in a bind, no matter how strange it may be, ask for my help.
"I can accept that, Cranel-san."
The elf smiled.
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.
.
And that's how after finishing the morning training we talked to Mama Mia who gave us two hours to go buy the armor. Therefore, we ran most of the way towards Daedalus Street until we descended into a complex of underground residences. We walked a little more until we reached an old house, Ryuu knocked on the door with a specific pattern.
From the door, a woman came out dressed in an apron, a child in her arms. "Oh, Lion. You haven't come to see me in years…" The woman had brown hair and ears of the same color, a tail wagging slowly from behind. The woman smiled as she looked at Timer. "It seems the gods are smiling on you, Lion. Have you finally settled down with a man? And a young one from what I see, but I don't blame you, he's handsome." The woman said as she approached Timer and touched her cheek.
"Linia, stop joking." Ryuu stood between them as he frowned. "This is my co-worker, Timer Cranel."
"Timer Cranel, my pleasure." The albino bowed before the woman.
"Uooo" The girl in Linia's arms leaned down and grabbed one of the strands of hair. "White!... Pretty white! Rabbit!"
Linia hid a laugh behind her hand, even Ryuu smiled. "You're right, Nina. She looks like a cute bunny, what the girls would say about the tastes of this Lion... hehehe."
"Stop joking, I'm not just here to say hello."
"You want armor, right?" Linia said. "I imagine it's for the bunny, Hum, let's see... come in, I'll look for my tape." Linia opened the door for them to enter. They both sat on the furniture in the living room.
Small footsteps were heard as Nina entered walking with trembling steps approaching Timer.
"Little bunny!". She pointed her finger at him.
"Timer Cranel"
The girl cocked her head, "That's my name, Ti-mer Cra-nel."
"Tin"
"Timer... tell me whatever you want."
"Tin"
"Timer!"
"Cranel-san, I don't think arguing with a girl is wise."
Timer sent him a look of disbelief before turning his head.
"Stay still, Mr. Groom. So I can take your measurements" She said as she put the tape on him and wrote it down in her notebook. "Raise your arms". A slight tingle ran through her body when he touched her sides. "Look at that Ryuu, your man is ticklish, you know where to aim when you're alone."
"Stop calling him my man."
"You're boring, that's why you're still single."
Ryuu's eyes darkened as he looked at the woman.
"I have your young measurements, now tell me what you want it to be, I can make you some elf armor, you know, like Ryuu's."
"Ahahaha...NO"
"You're not funny either, they're one for another."
"Grr, Well, I want my torso covered, my arms to be protected and my hands too, the shoulders can be free. "Normal pants, no short shorts."
She began to draw, "I see, is that how you mess it up?" She showed a sketch where a model was wearing a black shirt that cut off at the arms and continued from the biceps to the fingers. On top of a tight black vest, there were also arm protectors like the ones Bell used, but these were plain and without decorations, starting at the knuckles and ending at the elbows. To finish, black pants with several pockets.
"It's a lot better than I thought, I like it."
"It's simple and practical, something I can see Cranel-San using."
The woman nodded before putting the sketch away. "Ready Mr. Husband, you can come in two days and I will have your armor ready, it will be made with materials that will resist most Lv2 monsters, but not so much with Lv3 ones. So be careful".
"Well, that's it then."
Ryuu said as she walked out, followed by Timer.
"Hey young man."
"Yeah?"
"She wouldn't bring just anyone here, take care of my little sister, she deserves the best this world has to offer for everything she has done. My happy life is thanks to her. Make her happy, I order it from you."
"I…I will do my best."
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.
.
"Thank you for this".
"My elven pride would not allow my student not to return because his armor was leather."
She said with her nose a little higher, it was probably her pride speaking.
"I've said it before, but if anything happens to you, even if you don't ask me, don't doubt that I'll be there, Master Ryuu." Timer said with a smile. This time, a genuine smile, not one of mockery, but he actually wanted to smile for her.
Ryuu's cheeks took on a healthy blush, being called a teacher made her happier than she would have expected. "I'll be sure to remind you of that promise then, Cranel-San."
"More importantly, it's already getting dark, we should go back- Huh"
He suddenly felt very sleepy, too sleepy. "Something is wrong. "Master Ryuu." His body succumbed to his knees.
"Timer!" Ryuu caught him before he fell to the side.
In his mind, as he lost consciousness he could only think: What did you do now Bell.
"Let's get started, what does magic mean to me?"
Someone like me asked, it was like, but, at the same time it was like the other me, but not me.
"Funny, I usually see that evil self that likes to attack whatever moves." This time, this Timer was like on a separate plane, different from his usual nightmares. "Am I having a normal dream? It looks like there won't be any nightmares today."
"What does magic mean to me?"
"Will you keep asking until I answer right?"
"What does magic mean to me?"
"Power, powerful enough to send my enemies flying or bring them back if necessary."
"What does magic look like to you?"
"Void, capable of consuming everything, attracting and repelling whatever crosses its path."
"What am I looking for in magic?"
"Being able to defend myself, defend my brother, send anything that could be a danger away or bring it to me and destroy it before it becomes a problem."
"Does my self only desire that?"
"Yes, because my self knows that we don't need anything else. My self doesn't want to be anyone's hero, nor does it want to hurt anyone and we don't admire anyone. We just want to take care of and see my brother grow up. Like my self, although false , you should be able to understand."
"This me understands you, my me and your me understand each other. So be it then"
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.
"Huh?..."
Timer's eyes slowly opened. "Ryuu-san must have brought me here after I fell."
He owes that girl so much that he didn't know where to start. Her gaze drifted to the wall when she heard someone's footsteps.
"Timer-kun you gave us quite a scare." Syr said from the door. "Ryuu said it was because of tiredness, we already know that you don't sleep well, all that took its toll on you today. Not long ago you were injured, you shouldn't subject your body to that stress.
"You sound like a mother right now."
"I'm not making fun, I'm serious about this." She pouted.
"Me too, Syr-san. It was a compliment." Timer rethought his life in this Bar, until now, these girls always helped him in one way or another.
"We will have this conversation again."
"Yes Yes." He said hiding her smile.
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.
It didn't take me long to go eat, Mama-Mia was strangely kind and called it a day. It was... nice for a change.
Timer thought several times about his dream, it was so... normal. Considering every night is about something traumatic looking at a reflection of himself that wasn't out to destroy things was nice.
"Magic huh? I somehow feel like it was your fault, silly brother."
-Tim, come to church, something incredible happened today-
-I'm on my way-
"Yes, my instinct is never wrong," for some reason he wanted to slap his forehead.
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"Timer-kun take off your shirt." An excited Bell was trying to tear off his clothes. Timer raised an eyebrow as he resisted before being intercepted by Hestia who was also struggling with him.
"Do it now Timer-kun this is very important."
"What is this about, idiot." Timer complained. "How about first, hello Timer, how was your day or something?"
"Then brother, now you have to update your status first."
Timer rolled his eyes and then sighed. "Well do it then Hestia-sama."
--
Timer status. (The second row was the Bell update and the third is the Timer sum)
Lv. 1
Race: Human
Age:14 years
•Strength: B 730 - S 908 - S 922
•Resistance: B 703 - A 825 - A 894
•Dexterity: A 899 - S 999 - SS1122
•Agility: A 850 - S 962 - S 987
•Magic: I0
Magic:
-Firebolt: Fast attack magic.
-Inanis Esphaera: Generation of spheres with gravitational properties.
Song: Ancestral spheres, intertwine your being. Concentrated forces, power give birth, Fragmented Void, my spirit guides them, my soul shapes them. His will at my disposal.
Through the echo of this song, the nine fragments of a whole, the very essence of that whole in each fragment
Solid as steel, born to bring triumph. The shape changes as chaos conjures, A gale of annihilation, around whirling, The Inanis Esphaera, the power of the gods releasing.
Concentration and intonation, in my voice they converge, Ancestral spheres, fragments, their power unfolds, The end of all form, the echo of this song contains.
Thus, the song comes to an end, the magic dissipates, and, Fragments form the whole, in the legend it is inscribed, in the gekai, in the time that advances, The eternal magical power, in each verse it balances.
This song ended, witness that for a moment everything will be made up of fragments. Inanis sphaera
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"I don't know whether to talk first about that jump in statistics or about well... the magic" Timer said with a frown at the status sheet. That dream that prevented his day from turning sour turned out to be better than he expected.
"I should stop being impressed with you, but when you do things like this you break my expectations more and more. Playing with a woman's heart like that..." Hestia said with resigned eyes.
"You have magic too!" Bell shouted happily hugging Timer. "We have two...wait, why do we have two!?"
"That's what I wanted to know, when I was walking the dream knocked me out and I had a dream about magic." Timer said, leaving aside that they reached impossible statistics like S and SS.
"The same thing happened to me after reading a book on magic that I borrowed!"
Hestia's face turned pale, "Mmm... Bell-kun, I can see the book."
Timer could almost feel the bad omen, he let out a sigh. He walked to the table where the book he had never seen was. He knew all of Hestia-sama's books, this one was not hers. He opened it and it was blank.
"Bell...who lent you the book" Hestia said cautiously after looking at the book.
"Syr-san said that someone left this at the Bar and that I could read it as long as I returned it."
Timer nodded, "I'm not understanding, can you explain to me what's going on?" He said to the goddess who was sweating nervously.
Hestia sat on the bed, "It's a grimoire, books that can grant magic, as well as being very, very expensive. Probably almost as much as both knives combined."
It was at that moment that Timer also flopped onto the bed and looked up at the ceiling with cloudy eyes. "The debt will increase... Mama-Mia will charge me for this."
Bell looked between them before losing his smile. "I-I have to pay for this!" The albino grabbed his head with his hands. "What have I done..."
"The three of them remained silent."
"What's done is done. We'll fix this tomorrow, we shouldn't worry now." Hestia said.
"Hestia-sama, what happens with the chanting of the first magic, it only says: Quick attack magic." Timer asked.
"Normally, magic should indicate a superficial function and should be accompanied by singing, just like Inanis Sphaera, but Firebolt since there is no song, it should be activated only by saying its name" The goddess said pointing to the blade.
"So... Fireb-" Bell was about to say.
"NO!" Hestia jumped on him and covered his mouth. "We don't know what he does, you could make us explode! Tomorrow you can go to the dungeon and he can test your magic there"
"Tomorrow..."
Hestia raised her eyebrow at the disappointed tone in Bell's voice. "You're not thinking about going now, are you?"
"..."
Hestia sighed before smiling. "You can go tomorrow, Bell. You can both do it together."
"Alright".
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Pov Bell.
"I'm sorry, Hestia-sama." I said in my mind as I left the church. I didn't tell Timer anything because he would object to this. But I'm excited! I finally have magic!
He had waited for this for a long time, so much so that he memorized the chant for Inanis Sphaera.
It didn't take long to reach the first floor of the dungeon, "Okay, there's a goblin, let's start with this... Firebolt!" Bell extended his hand to him, as he said the activation word a beam of fire shot out of his hand.
The goblin in front of him disappeared, even the magic stone ceased to exist.
"I-only the ashes were left... This is incredible!" Bell looked at two more and shouted "Firebolt" many more times.
"Firebolt."
"Firebolt."
He didn't know how many times he cast the spell, but he knew it was incredible.
Bell's chest was rising and falling, "I don't know how much I've lost so far... I should try Timer's magic now." He looked around and started singing. "Song: Ancestral spheres, intertwine your being. Concentrated forces, power give birth. Fragmented void, my spirit guides them, my soul shapes them. Their will at my disposal.
Gururu.
Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a War Shadow approaching dangerously close to me. I quickly tried to move to the side. "By the echo of this chant, the fragments of a tod-" An explosion from his palms occurred out of nowhere, the impact slammed him hard against the wall, luckily for him, the monster was also injured.
"W-what- Arghh." Bell tried to stand up, but suddenly the world warped around him, his head shaking uncontrollably before collapsing.
The war Shadow crawled slowly trying to reach the albino.
Just inches from reaching its throat, a sword pierced the monster.
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"You killed a floor boss on your own, Aiz. By tomorrow it will only be talked about in Orario."
A beautiful green-haired elf was accompanied by the sword princess. "Hmm".
"Huh?" Riveria noticed a monster attacking someone on the ground. "Aiz-"
Without needing words, the blonde accelerated and destroyed the monster's gem. "It's... Bell."
"Bell... Isn't that the boy who was injured?" Riveria knelt down looking for wounds. "He is still breathing, but he suffers from zero mind, and these burns on his hands are a sign of Will-o'-the-Wisp."
Aiz looked at him carefully, "Did he lose control of the incantation?"
"Probably".
"I see... Do you think there's any way... I can help?"
Riveria opened her eyes slightly, Aiz Wallenstein was worried about something that was not related to the dungeon. A smile crossed her lips. "If you do what I'm going to tell you, your recovery will be faster."
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"Do as I tell you, no man would refuse that coming from you. I'll go ahead."
Riveria said as I left that room, but just as I passed she found the same boy who should be on the floor leaning against a wall. For a moment he wanted to go back and see if the boy was still on the ground. "I imagine you are a relative."
"Twin brother actually."
"I see, why he was on the ground alone." Riveria asked.
"My foolish brother decided to be disobedient and went to the dungeon at night when he was told he couldn't. I was about to jump when The Princess of the Sword beat me to it."
Riveria immediately noticed the difference in behavior, her short interaction with Bell Cranel at headquarters leaving clear indications of a kind and shy personality. This one, on the other hand, was much more indifferent, the calm represented in her words was similar to her own.
"You're Nine Hell, right?"
"That's how it is."
When my brother was singing, he was interrupted by the arrival of a monster. A part of the verse was also said incorrectly. Then an explosion occurred. Do you know what caused it? Timer asked with genuine curiosity.
Riveria nodded. "That would be the description of a Will-o'-the-Wisp, it is the reason why magicians must be careful at parties, deconcentration causes a lack of control in the mana, although it can also be caused by an error in the chant, this is why a burst."
Timer nodded. "I see, I'm going up now, my brother is in good hands. Thank you for the information, as a thank you allow me to escort you to the dungeon entrance."
Riveria did not notice hidden intentions, even if she felt them it would not matter, she may be a magician, but against a Lv1 she would win 100% of the time. "I accept the offer, by the way, do you think her brother might be romantically interested in Aiz?"
"Completely sure".
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POV Bell.
I feel in heaven, although my butt was a little stiff my head was lying on the best pillow ever. As if the world decided to improve his situation, small caresses were placed on his head.
Bell opened his eyes slowly, the first thing he noticed were a pair of golden eyes, the second was the blonde hair... and, to finish, that blonde owner of his heart was smiling. "Beautiful..."
Aiz's eyes widened slightly, a bewildered look adorning her features. If Bell was crazy he would say she blushed.
Bell's brain composed itself, barely noticing that this wasn't a dream.
"Aaa-aiz-san!"
Bell jumped from his position, his back hitting a wall. Bell felt embarrassed, he had just been on Aiz Wallenstein's thighs!
Aiz approached and tried to touch his hands.
"Be careful, you're hurt-"
"Hiiiiii" Bell jumped towards another wall.
This time Aiz didn't move, she tried to say something, but the words died in her mouth.
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Pov Aiz.
He's afraid of me, yeah... That's how it is.
"This-" She tried to get closer to him, but the boy ran to another wall again.
Aiz felt a pressure in her chest. 'Maybe... I should just go.'
She didn't say anything to the boy, she simply walked out of the room. Her heart was pounding, one after another, a pressure settling in her chest. "Hurts". She murmured just to herself.
Until recently, the darkness inside her was at its peak, it was only thanks to this boy, the peace he gave her a moment ago dimmed all that evil inside her.
He didn't feel the dark flame now, but... Something hurt.
He's afraid of me.
He hates me.
Many adventurers do it. And him too.
"I didn't mean to bother" He said as he left.
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.
.
Aiz looked really sad now.
That expression... Bell felt worthless.? I'm such an idiot, a hopeless fool. She looked so sad.'
When she turned around and seemed to want to leave, he felt that if he let her go now he would regret it all his life.
A memory came to mind. Aiz's back was superimposed on that of a blonde in a white dress.
"Wait, Aiz-san!" Bell took his hand. "I'm sorry, I'm still very nervous."
The sadness in his eyes dimmed a little.
"Thank you for saving me." Bell said as they looked into each other's eyes.
"Alright..."
"Oh I'm sorry!" Bell noticed that he was still holding his hand.
"Alright"
"This is the second time you saved me, I feel I am indebted to you, if you wish not to train me I will agree. I wish I didn't have to bother you anymore."
"We said we will do it when he comes back, tomorrow we will do it."
"W-what, really? You don't have anything to do?"
"We are going to do that tomorrow"
"But won't it be problematic?"
"We are going to do that tomorrow".
Bell sweated a little, but her attitude touched him, his cheeks warmed. "Okay it'll be a date."
"Appointment..."
"Nothing! I didn't say anything!"
"What's a date?" Aiz tilted her head curiously.
"Don't make me say it..." Bell covered his face with his hands.
"But I don't know what it is... Won't you tell me, Bell."
Boom.
Something, something stirred inside him. "It's when two people enjoy spending time together... mmm they go out to eat... they walk together and then there's a... a...". Bell's face turned deep red.
"Mmmm, it'll be a date then..."
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.
Ryuu found herself amazed, she always did it every time she trained with this white-haired man, but today he exceeded her expectations. "So... you not only developed one magic, but two. Not only that, but one of them doesn't require chanting."
"In essence."
Ryuu let out a sigh. "Okay, the real geniuses are still amazing. Let's start with the short sword, then the long one and we will finish the practice again with long swords."
"Well, should I point it at the sky? The walls could be damaged." He saw Ryuu nod to what he said: Firebolt!
A line of fire traced the sky for about 20 meters before disappearing.
Ryuu nodded. "I could probably finish off even monsters from the 9th floor in one go." That beam of fire was more of a cannon than anything else, although the chant was instantaneous it lacked the power necessary to be called a good spell.
"I guess..." Timer agreed, now the thing was getting used to it.
"Next then."
"Ancestral spheres, intertwine your being. Concentrated forces, give birth to power, Fragmented Void, my spirit guides you, my soul molds you. Your will at my disposal.
Through the echo of this song, the nine fragments of a whole, the very essence of that whole in each fragment
Solid as steel, born to bring triumph. The shape changes as chaos conjures, A gale of annihilation, around whirling, The Inanis Esphaera, the power of the gods releasing.
Concentration and intonation, in my voice they converge, Ancestral spheres, fragments, their power unfolds, The end of all form, the echo of this song contains.
Thus, the song comes to an end, the magic dissipates, and, Fragments form the whole, the legend is inscribed in the gekai, in time that advances. The eternal magical power is balanced in each verse.
This song ended, witness that for a moment everything will be made up of fragments. Ironically, they also form a whole. Inanis sphaera!"
As he finished, 3 fist-sized spheres formed in the palm of his hand, each orbiting each other. Timer moved his hands and the spheres still stayed there in the air without moving. "They don't move."
Ryuu tried to touch them, "They're solid." He laid small blows. "The song mentioned something about control through the spirit, try to move them using your thoughts."
Slowly a sphere began to move. "It's difficult, it requires a lot of concentration." She put a hand in front of him, "How can I make you move... move... It's not an order, it's a request, please move."
Timer made it, one of them was moving slowly, but it was moving. "Think... think about the feeling. Make it move faster." The sphere moved faster, he tried it with all 3 at the same time and felt how a gigantic effort was needed to coordinate each one.
Timer tried so hard that one of the spheres shook, and then an unknown force pushed him and Ryuu towards the sphere.
Ryuu was able to hold onto the ground, but Timer was dragged away. "AH, Stop!" The attraction stopped. Once he did, the sphere that was previously pure black turned white, a white that slowly regained its color.
"From what you see, magic can attract something, if it were someone of your same level it would have fallen into the sphere. It has a cooldown, try another one."
This time he made sure to hold onto the ground as well as move away considerably. Only for the sphere to send out a wave that sent him against a garden wall and held them there.
"Wh-what the hell." Timer made the sphere stop and fell to the ground, meanwhile Ryuu stood in his place with the sword stuck in the ground to support himself.
"Attraction and repulsion, each sphere must do something different, use the remaining sphere, the first one almost returns to its color too." She said looking at the two white spheres that slowly turned black. "Pull the sphere as far away as you can and keep it active."
Timer did so, sending her about ten meters until the sphere could not take her any further. Once there I activate the sphere. Ryuu took a stone and threw it at her, around 5 meters from the sphere the stone headed towards her.
"Hold it, and if you can, move it while it's active."
"... It's complicated"
"I finally hear those words come out of your mouth" Ryuu said almost smiling. This could be considered teaching.
Timer grimaced. "Don't say: Geniuses can't be arrogant. If you say it I'll get angry" Timer complained as the stone almost fell off before adding strength again.
Ryuu continued to throw things until the point of attraction. "It is clear to me that it has a range of 5 meters from where you want to place the sphere, can you reduce the radius?"
Timer tried it. The rocks in the corners fell.
"You reduced it by a meter, not bad." Ryuu watched as Timer collapsed to the ground, she approached him, "A Mind Down... So he has limits too." Ryuu returned her gaze to the spheres, all the rocks fell to the ground due to the lack of attraction, but the sphere was still there. Looking at the other 2 remaining she noticed that they stopped dyeing black and stayed white, the first sphere they used only had one segment left to dye.
"They don't disappear, I wonder..." Ryuu made a cut on the sphere that was closest to being dyed black. The result was like hitting a metal ball. "They are resistant..." Ryuu hit the one they used recently, upon contact it fragmented and disappeared. "This one, on the other hand, is as hard as glass. I wondered what uses you will give to this magic, Cranel-san."
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.
--At the same time--
"Kyaaa!" Bell screamed when he noticed that he was once again on Aiz Wallenstein's thighs.
"Why are you screaming."
"I'm sorry!"
"...Mmmm... Don't you like it?"
"It does! T-this..." His face reddened. "I just... I'm embarrassed when I'm awake," she said softly.
"I understand" Aiz nodded. He just had to stop staying awake...
"A-aiz-san...Why are you looking at me like that-- Argh!
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"Kyaaaa!"
"Don't scream," Aiz said, stroking his head.
Bell tried to get up, but Aiz's hand stopped him. "The blow just now was too strong, you must not get up." That's what he said.
Bell, for his part, looked at the blonde in disbelief, his cheeks blushing from the position, added to the fact that she continued caressing him. "I'm in heaven?". Despite her embarrassment, Bell sighed contentedly, the feeling was pleasant.
"You don't look like an adventurer."
Okay, Bell admits that hurt. With hidden pain he closed his eyes.
"Why are you fighting?" Aiz asked.
"...Being a hero, that's my dream." Bell said with determination. "I wish to be a hero."
"I see..." Aiz was silent.
"But I also want to live a happy life, my brother usually tells me that it's no use focusing on a silly dream if in the end I won't have friends to congratulate me when I fulfill that dream."
"Live happily..." Aiz repeated.
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"Kyaaaa"
Aiz again observed the boy's startled legs.
"Aiz-san, why did you become an adventurer?" Aiz thought of one thing immediately. Kill the One-Eyed Dragon. But also... living with my mother.
"I have... a goal to accomplish and I need to be strong."
"Your goal must be something that a normal person like me could never achieve." Bell said trying to make a joke, but he noticed that her expression didn't change.
"It's not a hero's habit to put himself down like that, Bell."
"But I'm useless! I'll never be as good as Timer!"
"...You don't need to be like that, be your own person, stop trying to do things like him, if you fail, reinvent yourself and try again. I know you can do it"
"..."
"I was nosy, sorry I won't ask more about that."
Aiz shook her head. "You answered me... I will too... My mother... she is missing, that's why I keep fighting."
Bell almost punches himself in the face for being an idiot, when he would stop ruining things. "I'm sorry if I was nosy."
Aiz nodded. "...You have a brother... What's it like to have one..."
Bell thought for a moment before answering, reflecting on his experience as a younger brother.
"Having a brother is... special. It's like having a friend for life, someone you can always trust and lean on. We share memories, adventures and challenges together. Sometimes we fight, of course, but we always know that we are there for each other."
Aiz listened intently, processing Bell's description.
"In my family there are two sisters like that..."
"Are they twins too?"
"No, but they also lived together since they were little."
Bell smiled fondly as he recalled one of his favorite moments with his brother.
"There was one time we went to the river and a big fish caught my hand, I was scared, but he helped me and took care of me on the way home. Timer is usually very serious, but there are times when you can tell he cares about me. others. It was an incredible experience and made me realize how much he cares for me."
Aiz nodded, appreciating the warmth of the story.
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.
"Hiii"
"You didn't scream" Aiz smiled to herself, her lips curling upwards slightly.
Bell blushed, her smile was beautiful.
"I'm getting used to it."
"I see... You are good, but... You are a coward"
Another dagger in his chest was what Bell felt.
"Mmmm, ouch."
"You are a rookie, but you have the ability to move like a level 2, you are good, but at the same time you hesitate when you attack, your attacks are rough, your way of holding the knife is poor and your footwork is barely manageable. "
Bell lowered his head. "I see."
"But you learn well, you don't make the same mistakes again and you've been adapting to my way of fighting."
The white-haired man smiled at the praise. "I thank you for the training."
"It's nothing, it was... It was... Beneficial for me too. I'm sorry if I hit you hard."
"It's my fault for not dodging." Bell lowered his head in resignation.
"No... I leveled up yesterday... my body has to get used to it."
Bell widened his eyes, "Wow, Lv6 is amazing. Does each level take some getting used to?"
Aiz tilted her head. "It depends... the rise from Lv1 to Lv2 is not as big as the one from Lv3 to Lv4 and this one is not as big as Lv5 to Lv6 either. Everything in the body is upgraded and you have to use your strength or you might accidentally break things."
"I understand" Bell closed his eyes enjoying the feeling of Aiz's fingers. "Don't you get tired of being like this, Aiz-san?"
"No".
"Are you sure-"
Yes
"Ok" Bell laughed nervously, he noticed how she closed her eyes and nodded, this had happened before. Once in a while she would close her eyes and sleep a little.
-Timer- Bell asked over his communication channel.
-This- There was a pause. -It's not a good time- Argh!-
- Are you OK? - Bell asked him.
-Being beaten by a blonde elf isn't so bad-
-Oh, hey... well... I'm with Aiz and...-
-Mmmm, make sure to tell him that I helped you with the magic, it's much harder to handle than I assumed-
-I understand, but, well...-
- What's going on? - Timer asked.
-I'm in a strange situation...-
-Being you, I imagine it's not bad in any way-
-Hehe... they've been giving me a lap pillow-
-Of the princess of the sword no more no less... grandfather would be proud, Bell-
Bell blushed, but returned to the topic. -She fall asleep...-
An incredulous sound came from Timer. -...I see... How do I say this... Please don't do anything to get yourself killed-
Bell waved imaginary hands. - I won't do anything wrong! -
-Remember that she is Lv 5, and will defend herself-
"I won't do anything like that," he said while hiding his face in his hands.
-Just... don't make Grandpa proud if... you get yourself killed. Stealing kisses from a Lv 5 doesn't sound smart.
"You're horrible," Bell lamented.
-Just kidding, just don't act like a jerk around a sleeping woman, good luck. I have to keep taking a beating. -
-Okay-
Bell looked back at Aiz, his head falling to the side. Bell gulped before slowly standing up. He carefully sat next to her, letting her lean on her shoulder.
"Resist it, Bell Cranel. You are a man." She thought as she hid her embarrassment from her.
All Bell could think about was the feeling of his body against hers, his head resting on her shoulder.
"Is this what happiness feels like?"
Bell froze as Aiz's body collapsed onto his lap.
"W-what."
Bell up to this point in his life was living a life without knowing what happiness was.
This moment, this position, with this girl leaning on him... This was happiness.
A bold thought ran through his head. Carefully, he began to run that blonde hair through his fingers. With the care he never even gave to a rose petal, Bell brushed a strand of hair away from the girl's face.
A deep blush appeared on his face, but he didn't stop, he stroked her head like she had been doing before.
"This is very nice" Bell felt his heart warm. Bell hoped this moment would last.
Several minutes passed like this, Bell continued to caress her head without realizing it.
For her part, Aiz had been in a deep sleep, oblivious to the position she was in, rubbing her face on Bell's legs, unknowingly causing the white-haired boy to blush even more.
The serenity on his face had remained intact as he rested on Bell's legs. However, the dream eventually began to fade, and her golden eyes slowly blinked as she regained consciousness.
Aiz blinked sleepily. "Where I am?"
His voice was soft and sleepy as Aiz still confused by her surroundings looked up, meeting a pair of ruby eyes. She blinked again, looked around her, trying to get her bearings, and finally realized her position.
The flush of surprise and embarrassment spread across Aiz's cheeks as she realized she had been sleeping with her head resting on Bell's legs. The position was unusual and completely opposite to what he had planned. "She was the one who should give the pillows, not him!"
"Oh!" Aiz quickly stood up.
Bell could only watch his action and laugh happily, despite his embarrassment he couldn't help but laugh at the situation. Feeling bold he said smiling: "Don't shout."
.
.
.
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