Author's note: The chapter has just been corrected and updated, I had put a huge mistake in it.
Chapter 16: Downward travel
Takemikazuchi was a god who could generally be described as calm. A man who kept his cool, often in a good mood and friendly to those around him. However, this time, he had just been told some news that was not going to put him in a good mood.
"What have you done?" he asked his children, who did not look proud of themselves. They had just returned from a very complicated day in the Dungeon. Several were injured and in shock, showing that they had just had a very bad time. In fact, they had fallen victim to the phenomenon known as the Monster Party and had been forced to flee from an army of monsters on their heels. But to survive, Ouka, the captain of the familia, had decided to use a special method.
"A pass parade... You made a pass parade to another group..."
A particular technique which involved luring monsters towards another group of adventurers before fleeing, in the hope that the creatures would change targets. And that was exactly what they had done. They had guided the monsters after them towards some poor guys who hadn't asked for anything before handing them the hot potato. And it was the kind of poisoned gift that the recipient rarely escaped unscathed.
"It's... it's my fault, Lord Takemikazuchi! I'm the one who made this decision."
Takemikazuchi was a god who knew how to be pragmatic and understood that there were sometimes difficult decisions to be made, but as a warrior god, he was attached to a certain form of honour and did not like to see his children resort to such methods.
"I understand that you did what you thought was right to protect the others Ouka, but there may be consequences..."
At the time, Ouka had certainly not calculated when it came to diplomacy and inter-familia relations. But now he suspected that, depending on the deity these adventurers were obeying, there could be a risk of revenge.
"Have you been able to identify this group?"
"No. I don't think they were wearing any visible emblems, but it all happened so quickly."
"OK, do you remember what they looked like, any recognisable markings perhaps?"
"There were three of them, I think..." continued Ouka. "A man, young, tall, with red hair. I think there was a supporter too, but I don't know if it was a child or a pallum. The third, er..."
"A young man, white hair, red eyes." Mikoto added. When they'd walked past, she'd met his gaze and seen incomprehension. Ever since, that ruby-eyed gaze has haunted her.
As for their divinity, he suddenly turned pale.
"Oh no... It must have been the Little Lion."
"Who's that?" asked Mikoto, who hadn't taken much interest in the other adventurers lately.
"Nothing less than Ishtar's new favourite. You can imagine how much she'll enjoy it when she hears about this."
The rest of the familia turned pale. Ishtar still enjoyed a certain reputation and she was not known for being a goddess full of compassion and patience.
"What... what are we doing Lord Takemikazuchi?" his captain asked hesitantly.
"Our choices are limited. Ishtar will eventually find out and she certainly won't like it. I think the best thing to do is to go and see her. If we admit our fault, we might be able to contain some of her anger. Who knows, she seems to have softened recently, so maybe we'll have a bit of luck."
"Is there really no other way?" Mikoto asked, rather worried.
"Now that you mention it... Yes! At the last Denatus, Hephaestus taught me something interesting. I believe Hestia is working for Ishtar at the moment. Maybe she can act as a mediator and help us."
"Er... are you sure about this?"
"Not at all, but our options are limited. Let's go my children, the sooner we get this sorted out the better."
"THEY DID WHAT!" Ishtar shouted. Takemikazuchi then realised that the diplomatic solution was off to a very bad start.
As he had told his children, he had taken steps to find Hestia, which enabled him to understand that it was the Delebat, Bell's group, to whom his children had given the pass parade. The little goddess was very worried and sent for Ishtar. When Ishtar arrived, escorted by Aisha and Lena, she heard the news. Suffice to say, she did not take it well at all.
"Please, Ishtar, let's try to stay calm. I'm really sorry that..."
"Your kids gave Bell and his group a pass parade and you think you're going to get away with it just by telling me you're sorry? You've got to be kidding me!"
Immediately, Ouka stepped forward, stepped between the two deities, before falling to his knees and prostrating himself, forehead to the ground.
"It was I who took this decision, Lady Ishtar, the others merely followed my orders. I alone am responsible. I'm ready to offer you my life if I have to!" he said sincerely. It was at moments like this that his god could see how close he was to the samurai ideal.
However, his proposal did not have the desired effect.
"Stop this pitiful show and get up. Taking your miserable life won't bring Bell and the others back to me."
Takemikazuchi and his children didn't realise how lucky they were. If Ishtar had been as she was before, the consequences would have been terrible. She would have had no hesitation in charming them all to make them her toys. Ouka would have been perfect as a minion alongside Tammuz. As for Mikoto and Chigusa, they would undoubtedly have ended up in the middle of a dirty orgy where they would have been the main attraction, all under their god's eyes.
But that Ishtar had been gone for some time...
"OK, first, I need to calm down." The goddess said aloud to herself as she took a few steps to try and regain her composure. "Bell's no longer a rookie and Lili's smart, I'm sure they're alive. But if they haven't come up yet, then they're still in danger." The goddess turned to the god of war. " Well, we'll deal with this another time Take. You had the decency to come and warn me and admit your fault, and that's good enough. Now I have to worry about saving my children. Aisha! Gather a group of Berberas to go and rescue the Delebat."
But she could see from the look on Aisha's face that there was a problem.
"My goddess, it's..."
"Speak! What is it?"
The amazoness then approached her goddess and whispered something in her ear. Things that were best kept confidential.
"What! Today? Damn it!"
Unfortunately for Ishtar, her past bad choices were starting to catch up with her and she found herself trapped in embarrassing obligations that couldn't wait.
"May they rot in Gehenna! I'll go and get Bell myself if I have to!"
"My goddess, I beg you, be reasonable!" said Aisha, as the two launched into an endless argument. Ishtar was worried, that was obvious, but she didn't seem to care about the consequences of what she was going to do.
"Calm down, Ishtar." Hestia said, silent for a moment. "I'll go and get Bell myself." She said confidently.
"You... but why would you do that?"
"Well, if Bell and Lili die in the Dungeon, the Delebat will no longer exist. And without it, I lose my job and my home, plain and simple." She said a little embarrassed. But she wasn't fooling anyone, Hestia had also become attached to them, even if she pretended otherwise. The little goddess had come to see that Bell was a nice boy and not the lustful beast she had imagined him to be at first. As for Lili, she had compassion for this pallum who had lived through too much misfortune for her age.
"Hestia, you're not serious?" said Takemikazuchi. "A god in the Dungeon, that can only end badly."
"Too late, I've made my decision."
"Hestia, I... thank you!"' said Ishtar, grabbing the little goddess and giving her a hug. This meant that, with their size difference, the virgin goddess found herself smothering her nose in the goddess of beauty's chest.
"I get it, I get it, let me go now."
"Lady Hestia, let me accompany you." Ouka then said. "This situation was caused by my decision, let me pay my debt to this boy and Lady Ishtar."
"Ouka." Take said simply, not expecting such a reaction from his captain.
"In that case, I'm coming too. I can't find peace again if I don't go and save them too."
She had met Bell's gaze during the pass parade, a fleeting moment, but one that would haunt her for the rest of her days if she didn't do something about it.
"I... I'm coming too!" said the shy Chigusa then. "It's partly because of my weakness that we've ended up in this situation, I want to help too."
"Mikoto... Chigusa... Well, I'm counting on you." Their god simply replied, as worried as he was proud of their reaction.
"Goddess, I don't think you need me today, so I'll be going too." Lena said cheerfully. "Bell is my pupil, I refuse to see him die so soon." And certainly not until she had seen the 'beast' with her own eyes.
"In that case, I should be going too. You don't really need me... for that." Aisha added. Not to mention that she was feeling less and less like spending time with the other Berberas. Her little argument with Samira had shown that she no longer agreed with their way of seeing things.
"Well, well, a goddess in the Dungeon, what an interesting subject." said an amused voice. Everyone turned their heads and saw a blonde god with a hat, escorted by a woman with azure hair and wearing a white cape.
"Hermes. This really isn't the time."
"I understand, someone looks in danger. Are you really going, Hestia? That's quite a risk you're taking."
"And what?" interrupted Ishtar. "Are you going to threaten to report us to the Guild? I'd advise you to be careful what you say, my patience is very limited today." The goddess of beauty finished as her eyes took on an amethyst gleam, showing that under the influence of emotions, her charm seemed ready to be unleashed at any moment.
"Come on Ishtar, that's not my intention." Hermes replied quickly, trying to defuse the situation. "On the contrary, I was thinking of offering you my help.
"Out of the goodness of your heart? That's not like you."
"Well, I find the boy fascinating, I'm curious to see how far he can go and I'd think it a shame if he died so stupidly before showing his full potential."
"Entertainment? Is that your only motivation?" replied Ishtar, who found him far too suspicious.
"If that explanation isn't enough for you, then let's say that perhaps I want to win the favours of the goddess of beauty you are."
Favours of an intimate nature, of course, the implication was clear. But Ishtar could believe it, for she had seen so many mortals and gods ready to do anything for her embrace. Annoyed, she approached him and grabbed him by the collar.
"So be it, if you help save the Delebat, I promise you a night of love of such intensity that you'll be nothing but a dried-up mummy by sunrise."
Between the tone and the words, it was pretty hard to tell whether this was a promise of reward or a threat.
"So we'll have the backing of your familia Hermes?" asked Hestia.
"Unfortunately, they are busy with other things. That's why I'm coming myself!" he said playfully, shocking everyone present.
"Lord Hermes!" said Asfi, who had been silent until then. "Aren't you thinking about it? The Guild..."
"And as a bonus, I'm bringing my delicious Asfi here with me." He said, interrupting her, clearly paying little attention to her protests.
"Hmmm... Indeed, having Perseus as backup would be an advantage." Aisha said, not caring whether the azure-haired beauty was motivated or not.
"What's more, I think I know someone strong who could help us..." finished the travelling god with an air of mystery.
Further down in the Dungeon, the situation was not looking good. Bell, Lili and Welf were walking at a slow pace, all the while having to put up with the appalling smell of the monster repellent Lili was holding.
"A parade pass. Just our luck." The blacksmith said wearily as he limped along, with Bell supporting him.
"If Master Welf has the strength to complain, then he has the strength to go on. We must move quickly, Lili is almost out of monster repellent and the eighteenth floor is still a long way off."
Welf had already complained about the smell, but Lili had quickly scolded him, explaining how vital the item was at the moment. Both were on edge, a life or death situation tended to quickly put everyone in a bad mood. And they had reason to be, another group had done a pass parade on them, a technique consisting of attracting monsters to other adventurers to create a diversion and escape.
"Seriously, if I get my hands on them, I'm going to let them know what I think about it!"
"Maybe... they didn't have the choice."
"You really are too kind Master Bell, whatever their reasons, today we're the ones paying the consequences. Nothing can excuse that." Lili said bitterly. All this only confirmed her belief that adventurers were bad people and Bell was one of the few exceptions.
"Maybe... I don't know."
When the other group had passed them, he had seen that several were injured, one man was actually carrying a young girl on his back. And for a fleeting moment, the woman serving as rear guard met his gaze. Purple eyes gnawed with sorrow and a few fleeting words.
"I'm sorry..." she whispered at that moment and Bell was sure he heard her. It was enough for him not to blame them. What would he have done in such circumstances? Could he himself guarantee that he wouldn't do something similar if it would save Lili and Welf? He didn't know and wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer to that question.
But the situation still got them into a lot of trouble. The group who had given them the gift of their monsters had not just a few of them on their hands, but a whole horde that never seemed to end.
Trapped in the intermediate floors, they had had to fight, flee and block off paths to get some peace. Welf had been wounded in the leg and could no longer walk properly. He suggested they leave him behind, saying they owed nothing to anyone outside their familia, but Bell firmly refused. Even Lili, who was more pragmatic, refused this option.
It was then that she came up with a rather crazy idea. Instead of trying to go back up, she suggested going down, with the safe area of the eighteenth floor in mind. A place where they could heal and regain their strength before going back up, possibly by joining a group of more powerful adventurers. What's more, the Loki familia were on an expedition in the Dungeon, so they might just stumble across them.
However, they still had two problems. The first was how to get down there, knowing that the monsters were getting stronger and stronger. The second was the Goliath, the floor boss who guarded access to the eighteenth floor.
For the first, rather than waste time looking for the main path, they decided to look for the few shafts that linked the floors together and try their luck by jumping. As for the Goliath, they could only pray that someone had taken care of it.
"Are you sure about this, little Lili?" asked Welf, but all he got in reply was a short silence before the pallum replied.
"It doesn't matter... Anyway, Lili has no intention of dying here, she's got one more important thing to do."
"Really? I'd be curious to know what." Welf replied, trying to forget the pain by chatting some small talk.
"Dying is out of the question until Lili and Master Bell have... well... Fufufu..." Her words were followed by a strange, silly and somewhat disturbing laugh.
"Er... what was that?"
"Most likely the weird ideas our goddess put into her head." Bell replied.
"I see. You'd better watch your arse when we get home."
"I think so."
"Monsters approaching!" then shouted Lili, marking the end of their break.
"Holy shit, here we go again..." said Welf, grabbing his sword. Although wounded, he was ready to fight for his life.
Getting two gods into the Dungeon hadn't exactly been a piece of cake. It wasn't for nothing that the Ganesha familia was guarding the entrance on behalf of the Guild. It was also why the little rescue party had left at sunset. First of all, they had to prepare their expedition, including recruiting the mysterious person Hermes was counting on. Then, with the typical activity at the end of the day, it was easy for them to hide in the crowd, not to mention that it was the hour when the guards were beginning to tire.
Once inside the Dungeon, the first step was to go down to the place where Takemikazuchi familia had held the pass parade and therefore the last place they had seen Bell's group.
During the descent, Hermes took the opportunity to talk with Hestia.
"You surprise me, Hestia."
"What do you mean?"
"You're taking a lot of risks for a child who isn't yours."
"Like I said, if the Delebat disappears, I lose my job and my home."
"Come now, you can't expect me to believe something like that. You're interested in the boy, aren't you?" asked the god with that falsely innocent smile that was so characteristic of him. Hestia turned a little red, but was forced to admit that Hermes had seen through her.
"Maybe... not the way you think. At first, I was afraid that a child of Ishtar would turn out to be just another little slob. But I soon realised that he was very different from what I expected. I don't know, it's hard to describe, sometimes I feel a kind of bond with him, but I can't explain it. However, one thing's for sure, I don't want him to die."
"Interesting. So you really don't mind working for someone like Ishtar?"
"A little at first, but not any more, she's kept her promises and I have to admit that once you get past her lewd little jokes, she's a pretty pleasant person to be around. It surprised me, in fact, I didn't really know her before all this, but she's not at all like what her reputation said she was."
"Yes, she has softened a bit recently."
A gentle euphemism for a rather radical transformation. Still, we were talking about someone who had gone from sadistic and inflexible to sympathetic, gentle and teasing.
"It's good for me, I'm learning a few things about blessings and, what's more, I can put some money aside so that when I found my familia, I might have enough to buy myself a little house."
"You haven't given up on founding a familia, I see."
"No way! This is all just a temporary situation, an arrangement that suits me for the moment."
"I see. So, would you be interested in founding it with Bell?"
"I'm not saying it would be unpleasant, but the way he's attached to Ishtar, he won't leave her for me, no matter how much he likes me."
"Yes, without a doubt. But then again, we don't know what life is made of in the Gekai, Ishtar could very well return to the heavens at some point..." he quipped mysteriously.
"What are you trying to say? Are you going to try something against her?" Hestia asked him in an inquisitive tone, not really liking the innuendo he had just made.
"No way!" he replied with a chuckle. "I have absolutely no means of being a danger to her. I just wanted to say that Ishtar has had a complex life in the lower world and she doesn't only have friends."
"In that case, it would only be if Bell wished it so long as such a situation didn't break his heart first."
"Absolutely." Hermes replied, pleased to have defused the mine he himself had stepped on. No, he didn't have the means to attack Ishtar... not directly at least. But he already had plans to do so and knew who to use and how.
"Your turn, why go and save him?"
Unfortunately for Hermes, Hestia wasn't going to let everything go.
"I told you, I don't want that boy to die."
"That's too flimsy an explanation. And I don't think it's to lure Ishtar into your bed either."
"You're very suspicious, Hestia, don't you trust me at all?"
"You? Not at all. I had the opportunity to see what you were like, even in the Tenkai."
"You're breaking my heart Hestia." He said with a falsely sad look on his face.
"Stop your nonsense, I want the real reason."
"Fine." He said with a sigh. "It could be that Bell's grandfather is an acquaintance of mine and that he asked me to keep an eye on his family, quite simply."
"His grandfather?"
"And I've already told you too much, so, I'd ask you to be content with that Hestia."
"Fine, I'll settle for that." Hestia said, realising that she wasn't going to get any more information out of him. "For the moment at least..."
"Thank you."
"Another question. Where did that girl come from?" she asked, pointing at Ryuu's hooded figure.
Everyone was surprised to see her appear alongside Hermes, but he insisted that she was reinforcement from outside his familia. Everyone had been impressed by her strength when they saw her so easily slaughter the monsters of the higher levels. The Takemikazuchi children were too young to know her. Lena didn't really care. Only Aisha had strong suspicions, but she pretended not to know anything. Simply because she didn't care, as long as she helped them.
"Her? Let's say, an acquaintance of an acquaintance with whom we share some common interests in this case."
No one knew what Hermes had had to do before this rescue party set off. He had risked the animosity of the entire Hostess of Fertility to obtain Ryuu's help, not to mention negotiating Freya's passivity for a time.
The wandering god had many plans of his own, but no one knew. He had very specific intentions regarding Bell and the role he had to play in the future. But his scenario had become quite complex from the moment the young man had joined Ishtar's familia. This was an improvisation he had not envisaged at all. Had it been the old Ishtar, he would have immediately taken the necessary measures, but this new Ishtar was so different that he could no longer decide whether she was a good or a bad thing for Bell's future, and for his and Zeus' plans.
So, for the time being, he preferred to wait and not make any hasty decisions.
The three Takemikazuchi's children felt a little ashamed when they arrived at the place where they had come across Bell and his group. Ouka remained convinced that what he had done had been necessary, but he still felt ashamed and hoped he would never be in a similar situation again.
"It's here." Mikoto said soberly, praying that she wouldn't end up haunted by the ruby eyes she had briefly met. The small group then began to spread out to examine the surrounding area.
"No bodies, no traces of blood, no abandoned belongings. The monsters eat the corpses, but leave blood and stuff. Nobody died or was injured here." Ryuu said stoically, hiding her worry.
"In that case, where did they go?" asked Lena. "If they're all right, they should have gone back up by now or we'd have come across them on the main road."
"There must have been a problem, or the monsters pushed them further into the floor. Hey, big guy!" She gestured towards Ouka. "Did you have a lot of monsters after you?"
"Yes. Far too many, enough to... push me into making the decision I did." He replied through clenched teeth.
"In that case, rather than going up, they must have gone down." Said Asfi.
"Why would they do that? It would mean going into more dangerous areas." Mikoto pointed out.
"Yes, but it would also be easier for them to go straight to the safe area on the eighteenth floor. Bell hasn't been an adventurer for long, but his supporter has a lot of Dungeon experience, right?"
"Yes, not to mention she's clever."
"Then she'll probably have opted for this, especially if she knows the shortcuts between the floors."
"So we're heading for the eighteenth floor?" asked Lena.
Everyone looked at each other and nodded. The rescue party set off again, aiming for the safe zone.
For the trio continuing their descent, the situation had gone from bad to worse. The monsters had given them little time to breathe between waves and the further they descended, the more desperate the situation became.
One of the worst moments was when they were attacked by a whole bunch of minotaurs. Bell had overcome his fear of these creatures, but that didn't mean they were easy opponents, even though he was now level 2. He'd had to fight, use his Argonaut skill - which he was only just beginning to understand - and constantly fight on the edge.
After hours and hours of fighting and running, the group was close to its end. Bell was the only one still standing. They had had to abandon Lili's backpack and the poor boy was carrying his unconscious companions. Lili was lightly built, but Welf was heavy, and Bell may have been level 2, but he wasn't someone who relied on brute strength. As a result, carrying his two companions was quite a burden, not to mention the fact that he himself was injured and exhausted.
Finally, by some miracle, they reached the last room on the seventeenth floor, the final step before the safe zone. Bell couldn't take it any more, his two companions were still unconscious and he was at the limit of his strength.
But just as he was thinking how lucky he was that the Goliath wasn't there, it was at that very moment that the walls began to shake and crack. A scream, pieces of wall falling, the monster rex coming out of the wall, ready to kill.
Strangely, Bell found in himself renewed strength and unsuspected energy as he made his best sprint while carrying his two friends. The beast had just come out of the wall and had already noticed the presence of the three prey within range.
It was a close call, but Bell's determination to save his friends won out over everything else, and he drew on his strength to keep the distance. The Goliath slammed its fist into the ground, narrowly missing them, but the shockwave propelled them forward. Fortunately for Bell, it was straight down the access ramp to the eighteenth floor and the three of them tumbled before rolling to the ground.
The miracle of the Dungeon happened, as the monster rex didn't come after them. Despite all this, Welf and Lili had not been woken up and Bell himself was exhausted.
Lying on the ground, he struggled to maintain consciousness, but his vision was already becoming blurred. The last thing he noticed was a leg close to him as he reached out towards this unknown person.
"Please... help... my companions..."
Then he couldn't fight any longer and collapsed. However, fate had been kind to him, for it was a pretty, thoughtful blonde girl who had been attracted by the noise and found them.
Ishtar was in a bad mood... a very bad mood, and she made it very clear to everyone. As it happened, anyone who thought like Samira began to notice that there were traces of the old Ishtar still present.
The difference now was that she vented her anger differently, as Phryne could attest. One little comment had landed her on all fours, serving as Ishtar's seat. It was an unpleasant and humiliating situation, but the goddess had already established her authority and the amazoness horror could rant as much as she liked, but as soon as the amethyst glow appeared in Ishtar's eyes, she gave up completely.
Using Phryne as a chair had two advantages. On the one hand, it demonstrated her authority over her familia and especially her terrible captain, but it also gave her a higher viewpoint thanks to the toad's build.
Which was more than enough to intimidate the two poor merchants in front of her. Slave traders, a completely illegal activity by the way. It wasn't the first time she'd come across this type of individual, or placed an order with them.
She had been doing this for years in order to fill her brothels quickly and increase her wealth. All this with total indifference to the suffering of the young people she bought like ordinary pieces of meat. Without a thought for those who ended their lives, let themselves die of despair, succumbed accidentally to the blows of violent customers, served as a outlet for Phryne and other berberas, or those she had executed for pleasure or example.
Yes, Ishtar had quite a collection of terrible mistakes on her record.
"Goddess Ishtar." began one of the flesh traders, in an intimidated tone, "It's a real pleasure to..."
But all he got in reply was a grunt of displeasure from the goddess and he began to panic before speaking to his colleague.
"Bring in the merchandise! Quickly!"
Interpreting Ishtar's behaviour as simple impatience, he quickly brought in his merchandise. By this he meant around fifteen young people, two thirds of whom were young women. Most were young adults, but some were teenagers, and some were barely teenagers at all.
Sold by their families, captured by bandits, horribly classic stories. None of them had the flame of life in their eyes, some were frightened, others simply resigned to their fate. In the past, Ishtar would have been insensitive to all this, she would have looked only at their appearance and deduced which of them could be put to work in which place.
But now, their eyes were hurting her, while at the same time throwing her faults back in her face. A question then occurred to her: what would Bell say if he saw this?
Knowing him, he'd probably do something stupid and heroic, maybe he'd even attack the merchants to save them. But either way, she could hear his voice in her mind begging her to save them.
"Very well, I'll take them all." She said without emotion.
"A-All of them?" asked the merchant, used to the goddess being a little more observant.
"Yes, all of them, do you have a problem with that?"
"N-Not at all, Goddess! I'll get everything ready." Said the merchant as he led the young people away. The berberas accompanying the goddess were a little surprised, but said nothing, except for Phryne.
"Ooooooh! There's some cute new ones in the bunch. I'm going to take good care of them... kukuku..."
"Since when does a chair talk?" then asked Ishtar with a dark look in the direction of the evolution failure, which made the latter tremble. "And stop bothering the newcomers. If you're that bored Phryne, don't worry, I'll find something to keep you busy!"
Ishtar was putting up with this aberration of nature less and less, but in doing so, she was only feeding the toad's resentment. So the goddess settled the matter and issued instructions for the newcomers to be taken to a transitional building where they could rest and remain calm before what was to come. The berberas were a little puzzled by this new approach, but Ishtar justified it by explaining that it was tiring and unproductive to have newcomers trying to run away or commit suicide as soon as they arrived, and that she wanted to try another method to ease them into their new lives in the district. The excuse seemed coherent and nobody questioned it.
A short time later, Ishtar met someone else in a quiet corridor of Belit Babili. A beautiful pallum who always carried a fan in her hand. Neela, the head of the Midnight Sigh.
"What do you want goddess?" asked the pallum, not very pleased to be summoned.
"The two merchants who came earlier. Arrange for them to have... an unfortunate accident."
"Goddess... You know I don't like to do that sort of thing." she said with an accusing look.
"They're just vile slave traders who get rich off the misery of others and don't have the slightest empathy for those they exploit. I'm sure this will help you get over your guilt."
Yes, it was time for Ishtar to get rid of some of her mistakes, to cut ties with certain troublesome associates and, if necessary, even silence them. She couldn't get rid of Kali familia or the Evilus so head-on. But these kind of filthy merchants were easier to deal with.
There was a long silence, then the pallum spoke again.
"Then charm me and make me do it."
"I could Neela, but I don't want it to come to that."
"Have your berberas eliminate them if you want them dead."
"No, not that way. It is time for our familia to purge itself of some of its mistakes."
"You're a bit late for that!" said the pallum in an accusatory tone.
"I know, Neela... I know I've done too much." Replied the goddess with a sad look, which greatly surprised the courtesan, who had never seen such an expression on her. "But I still want to try and put things right. You're... one of the few people I can ask this sort of thing."
Neela could tell by the look on her face that she wasn't putting on an act to try and win her over. And that had never been her style anyway. She realised then that something was in motion, something she would do well to encourage.
"Fine, I'll take care of it."
"Thank you, I'm counting on you... Neela the Ethereal."
Had the sweet pallum fooled the world and was in fact hiding some formidable assassination skills? Not at all. Admittedly, she knew how to defend herself very well, she was level 2 after all, even if she never talked about it. And a courtesan had hundreds of opportunities to easily kill her clients, especially at times when they were relaxing. Poison in wine, a hairpin stuck in the back of the neck in the middle of a frolic, it wouldn't be the first time it happened.
No, Neela simply had the strength of experience and twenty years' seniority in the entertainment district. She had seen a lot. She was there when Zeus and Hera still ruled the city. Even the god of thunder was one of her customers. She had seen their fall, witnessed the rise of Freya and Loki, survived the Dark Ages and the Great Feud. Many years that had allowed her to make many contacts, including people who specialised in particular activities. For a time, she had acted as Ishtar's proxy for this kind of work. But she had gradually distanced herself from the goddess and focused on the Midnight Sigh, far from all that.
She never imagined that Ishtar would call on her again... or even that she would accept of her own free will. The pallum began to walk away, then turned round.
"Goddess. Have you... have you any news about Bell?"
"No, not yet. But... he'll be fine."
"Goddess?"
"It may sound strange coming from a deity, but I'm keeping the faith. I know he'll come back to us."
"I see. You're right. There are too many of us waiting for him to abandon us." Concluded the courtesan as she left.
Bell still didn't know how much he was loved and how much they were waiting for his return.
As for the young man concerned, he woke up with a jump, convinced that he was still in danger. But after a few seconds, he realised his situation. He was lying on a bed in a tent. He had been roughly cleaned and his wounds bandaged. He was no longer wearing his armour and seemed to be in a quiet place. He looked around quickly and saw that Welf and Lili were also there. Both were also wounded and still unconscious, but they were alive and had been taken care of too.
"You're awake..." came a quiet voice, accompanying a figure who had just entered the tent. Once Bell's eyes were accustomed to the light, he was finally able to identify the figure. His idol, Ais Wallenstein.
"Miss Ais. How..."
"Not here, let your friends sleep."
Bell understood and nodded in reply before leaving the premises in silence. Welf and Lili must have arrived here in worse shape than he did and probably still needed some sleep.
Once outside, the young man saw a landscape unlike any he had ever seen. At first he thought it was daylight, but when he looked up, he saw the ceiling and, above all, the gigantic crystals that emulated natural light.
"Are we... on the eighteenth floor?" asked Bell, somewhat uncertainly.
"Yes." The blonde replied in her usual laconic tone.
"I see... we made it." Bell said with a sigh of relief.
"I found you at the entrance and brought you here. You were injured, you're the first to wake up."
"Really? Thank you so much Miss Ais."
"Ais."
"Excuse me?"
"Just Ais." She said, emphasising her request. After training him for ten days and giving him lap pillow a bunch of times, she was hoping he'd be a bit more open with her. He had always been distant, despite everything. The young woman, who wasn't very good at this, didn't understand Bell's embarrassment towards her.
"A-as you wish... Ais."
"Better. Come on. Finn said he wanted to see you when you woke up."
Bell was brought before the Loki familia's captain, as well as his two closest allies, Riveria and Gareth. Bell being himself, he couldn't resist thanking these celebrities by kneeling before them. Finn simply took it lightly.
"Thank you so much for helping us."
"Come on, it's nothing. Adventurers have to stick together sometimes."
Which was totally untrue, Lili's story being the most blatant proof of that. Not to mention the fact that Finn Deimne was a schemer and rarely did things for no reason. On the one hand, by helping weaker adventurers, he could maintain his reputation. But it would also allow him to see if he could get some information from one of Ishtar's children, as Loki felt that the goddess of beauty should be monitored a little more actively, just in case.
"Still, a pass parade... you were very lucky to get away with it. It was an excellent decision to come here instead of trying to get back up in your condition."
"Oh... er... thank you." Bell replied shyly.
They then exchanged a few banalities. Finn had explained that their familia had just returned from an expedition and that several of their members had been poisoned. They were now waiting for a group who had left for the surface to return with enough antidotes. For the next few days, the three adventurers would be guests of the Loki familia. Bell thanked the Braver for his generosity and left the tent.
"'Done?" asked Ais, who was waiting outside.
"Yes. It looks like we'll be staying with you for a few days while we recover."
"Good."
Spending a few days in an encampment of Loki familia was a unique opportunity to see how a large familia worked, as well as spending time in the company of some high-ranking adventurers, some of them legends. But the fact that Ais was his guide also seemed to earn him the enmity of quite a few people. For years, the Sword Princess had remained a cold, unapproachable beauty. And now, suddenly, she was giving all this attention to a kid who'd appeared out of nowhere, so it was hardly surprising that it was causing a bit of jealousy.
"Ah, it's the Argonaut!" came a cheerful female voice.
"Oh, finally awake?" continued a second female voice from the same direction.
Bell then saw two young women, amazoness, coming towards him. One had long hair, a large chest and was rather calm, while the other, with short hair and much flatter attributes, showed a certain exuberance.
"Tione, Tiona."
Bell immediately recognised both her names when Ais said them. The two amazoness were therefore the Hiryute sisters, also celebrities. Come to think of it, this must have been the first time he'd met amazoness who weren't berberas and who didn't look at him, either with contempt or with that little glint in their eyes that said they wanted to do all sorts of things with his buttocks.
"Argonaut?" asked Bell, starting to panic. Where had this girl heard about his new skill?
"Sorry," began Tione. "She's been calling you that since..."
"We saw you fight the Minotaur! It was absolutely amazing! It reminded me of that fairy tale from my childhood."
Bell was inwardly relieved, so it was just a happy coincidence.
"Do you know the myth of the Argonaut?" asked Bell.
"Yes, I do! Not only that, I love all those tales, like Sword Oratoria."
"Really?" said Bell with a twinkle in his eye. He certainly hadn't expected to find someone as passionate as him on the subject in the middle of the Dungeon. Haruhime had already been a surprise.
"Looks like my sister has found herself a new friend. And quite cute I must say."
Tione was certainly totally smitten with Finn, but that didn't mean she didn't recognise qualities in others.
"Er... thanks." Bell said, a little embarrassed by the compliment. Otherwise, their presence didn't bother him. In all the time he'd been in his familia, it now took more than amazoness in little clothes to make him lose his temper.
On the other hand, the hostility sent his way from afar was far more disturbing. After the Sword Princess, he was also monopolising the Hiruyte sisters. Especially Tiona, who had just clung to him. It wasn't unusual for her to be tactile, but not to this extent with a man, let alone a stranger to the familia. And Bell could feel it. It had to be said that he had become particularly sensitive to the gaze of others since he felt himself spied on from afar at times. In his own way, he had become aware of Freya's gaze.
"Something on your mind Bell?" asked Ais then, having become aware of his discomfort.
"Oh, no, I just thought I'd go for a walk while I waited for my companions to wake up, it's the first time I've seen this floor. I find it fascinating."
"That's normal, it has that effect on everyone the first time!" replied Tiona, as cheerful as ever. "Come on, Argonaut, I'll show you around!" she said, taking his hand and leading him along. Ais followed with her usual impassive air, as did Tione, who let out an amused sigh. But she too had noticed that Tiona was behaving unusually tactile towards this adventurer. Would her dear sister miraculously take an interest in a man at last?
The small group wandered around the camp and Bell could see just how big the floor was. He already knew that each floor of the Dungeon was always bigger than the previous one as you went down, but on the usual floors, you only saw the mazy side. Here, on this floor with no interior walls, you could really appreciate the size of the place and that made things quite impressive for a newcomer.
Bell also discovered how little he knew about this part of the Dungeon. He was quite surprised to discover that, in addition to a large forest and a lake, there was even a town on this floor. His guides quickly explained how Rivira worked and what it was used for, even though people thought twice before buying anything there because the prices, far from Guild control, were so unreasonable.
After this little tour of the surrounding area, the small group returned to the camp. While the three young women went about their business, Bell returned to the tent where Welf and Lili were still.
As the hours passed, he saw the light on the first floor diminish and was surprised and amazed to discover that the place even had a day/night cycle.
Finally, it was during what he thought was the early evening that his two companions showed signs of waking up.
Welf was the first to wake up, groaning as he sat up, trying to regain his senses. Lili followed him a moment later, also still groggy but alive.
"Welf! Lili! Are you... are you all right? Do you recognise me?"
"Yes, I'm just about all right..." replied the blacksmith.
"Of course I recognise you, Master Bell. You'll have to hit me over the head a lot harder for me to forget you." The pallum replied with a big, tender smile. "Where are we?" she then asked, Lili had not expected to wake up in safety, or even to wake up at all. Bell then gave them an update. How they had finally arrived on the eighteenth floor chased by the Goliath, how Ais had found them and how Loki familia had welcomed, cared for and sheltered them.
"You could say we've come a long way. In any case, I'm glad we followed your idea, little Lili." Welf said with a more relaxed air.
"Me too, well done Lili."
"It... it was nothing, Master Bell." The young woman replied with a blush, unused to compliments after years of scorn and mistreatment. "Besides... we're alive mainly thanks to you, Master Bell."
Which was not untrue, Bell had been the bulk of their strike force during the descent and it was he, the last man standing, who had carried them this far. It was as their tent opened that the figure of a young woman came into view.
"Are you awake?" asked Ais. "Can you get up? It's about time for dinner."
"Perfect! I was just starting to starve after all that excitement." Welf simply stood up. Life seemed so simple from his point of view. Bell offered Lili his hand to help her up and although she didn't need it, she didn't hesitate to accept Bell's gesture of goodwill. She was hungry too, so everyone hurried off to the dining area.
Loki's familia were rather welcoming and Finn even made a short speech to welcome them. When it was time to settle in, Ais beckoned Bell to come and sit next to her, which immediately drew a nasty look from a young elf sitting nearby. A person he recognised immediately, the one he had met on the first day of his training with the blonde swordswoman.
"Arg! It's the crazy fairy from last time." He thought, not really comforted by her presence. He took his seat all the same, while Lili made sure she quickly settled in beside him. Harem or not, she still wanted to mark her territory. At least, that's what she had hoped, before being pushed aside by a playful amazoness who shamelessly moved in between her and Bell.
"Hey, Argonaut!" said Tiona, still as cheerful as ever. "You were level 1 when you fought that minotaur, right?"
"Er... yes."
"Your stats must have been really high then. How did you get to be so strong at Level 1?" The beautiful amazoness' question was pure curiosity, but Ais, eager to get to the bottom of this secret, was also listening intently.
"A lot of work and training in the Dungeon. I didn't do anything else in particular."
It was a good thing he'd learnt his lines by heart from his goddess. And at least here there was no deity to deceive. Although he hadn't technically lied. He hadn't done anything in particular per se, his skill had just appeared on its own.
"Really? Who trained you then?"
"Someone from my familia, a berbera named Lena." He replied. That was no secret and it would seem much more believable if he admitted that someone had trained him. "And recently, Aisha too."
"OH! Did Antianeira train you? And Lena, you mean Lena Tally, Purus?"
Despite that playful air that made her look silly to some, Tiona was far from stupid or uninformed. She knew most adventurers well, especially when they were other amazoness. After all, you never knew when an old friend from the past might resurface.
"Except that her alias is Tangou now." Lili said as she tried to regain her seat. She was willing to open up, but there was already a playful amazoness in the competition, she didn't want a second one. No, she needed to score points quickly and she decided to go on the attack. "Master Bell. Lili is still very tired. Would you... please feed me?" she said with a falsely sad face and a pleading look, before approaching him with her mouth open.
"Here, Lili!" said Welf, sitting behind them, stuffing a chicken leg into her mouth. "I'm sorry I didn't see you were so tired. Don't hesitate to ask if you still need help."
"Thank you Master Welf. Your kindness and generosity know no bounds." She replied through gritted teeth.
"You're welcome." Said the man who had understood absolutely nothing of the situation. If glances could kill, then Welf Crozzo would be dead right now, struck down on the spot by Lili's very black gaze at that moment.
This rather good-natured dinner was then interrupted by a panicked scream coming from the passageway to the seventeenth floor. Bell's nature is always to come to people's aid, so he immediately got up and headed off in the direction of the noise. Welf and Lili immediately followed him, as did Ais, as well as Tiona and a few other members of Loki familia.
"Nobody told me there'd be a giant monster in the way!" shouted the one who looked like a young woman with generous curves and black twintails.
The rescue party had finally reached the eighteenth floor. The presence of the Goliath was rather unexpected. Of course, by combining the strength of Aisha, Lena, Ryuu and Asfi, they could have simply eliminated him, but on the one hand, it would have been risky to start a fight while having to protect two deities who had no business being there. On the other hand, given that they had to be discreet, it would be a bad idea to eliminate a monster rex, as many people would inevitably ask questions.
When Bell saw the figure at the head of the group, he was rather surprised.
"What the... Lady Hestia?"
"Bell! You're alive! I knew you'd make it!" said the goddess, pleased to have found him so quickly. Just as she was about to approach him, she was overtaken by a figure who ran towards Bell and took him in her arms.
"Beeeeeeeeeeell! You're alive! I was so worried!"
"Lena? Yes, I'm all right."
"Are you truely all right? Are you still in one piece? Everything in its place?" said the amazoness as she examined him from every angle before taking him in her arms and hugging him tightly, burying his face in her chest. "Don't worry, everything's going to be fine, big sister Lena has come to save you!"
"Let him breathe a little." Aisha said as she put an atemi on the top of her head to release the young man, who was then able to catch his breath. "Still alive? Well done kid."
"Aisha? You've come too? And you, Lady Hestia, what are you doing here, I thought the gods..."
"Well, it was either that or let Ishtar come and get you herself."
"Really? But how did you know we were..."
"In danger so quickly?" said a blond man who approached. "I'll explain everything, my boy."
"God Hermes, what are you doing here?" asked Bell, surprised to see a second god.
"It's a long story, but do you have somewhere we can rest first? I have to say, this whole descent has been pretty exhausting." Said Hermes, a mysterious smile on his lips. He didn't look like a man happy to have completed his mission, but rather impatient for something.
The arrival of this small group, which for some meant rescue, was in fact the start of the next trials. And they would be extremely intense...