Bell POV
It was daytime yet I was still asleep. I was simply enjoying the warmth of my bed since I now had my own room. It was basic and near empty except for a dresser, a desk, a bed, and a dog bed for Regis. He of course complained but I knew he was sleeping in it. Even though the bed wasn't that expensive it still felt very soft. It probably felt that way as I had been sleeping on a couch for 11 days. The bed was so nice and so soft it even smelled nice too. Smelled just like lilac and gooseberries. Wait a minute lilac and gooseberries.
My eyes shot open seeing Aisha awake and smiling next to me. "Well well well look who finally decided to wake up," Aisha said. I looked down at her and saw her clothes were gone as well as my shirt.
"Oh my god," I looked at her shocked. "We we didn't have sex did we," I asked nervously. She chuckled at my nervousness before pushing herself up to sit on the bed. Now either she forgot she was naked or she knew what she was doing but she gently took my hand in her.
"No Bell we didn't. You were drunk and wanted to but I declined" she said giving my hand a gentle squeeze.
"What why you've been trying to get in my pants for days now," I asked confused. "Because I would've taken advantage of you. You weren't in your right mind and I knew you wouldn't want this if you were sober" she said her voice soft and full of care.
"Then why are you in my bed," I asked calmed down a little but still nervous. "Because you asked me to stay so you wouldn't feel alone" she gave my hand another gentle squeeze. I looked away breaking eye contact with her for a moment. She lightly grasped my chin and made me look at her.
"I'm not judging you for feeling that way the death of family is hard. It's normal for you to feel sad and doesn't make you any less of a person" she says before letting go of my chin and gently patting my hair.
I chuckled "never thought I'd see this side of you again" I joked. She smiled at me before she took her hand off my hair. "I'm grateful for you ya know. Not many would've done what you did for Haruhime and I" she then put her hand on my shoulder. "We amazons know no shame when we find a man we love Bell. So expect a lot of affection in the future" she said giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze. My eyes widened slightly. "You don't have to say anything Bell" she then stood up and grabbed her clothes. "Just know that if you ever want to I'll gladly do it with you" she then put her clothes on quickly and left the room.
I sat there for a few minutes still trying to wrap my head around what I just heard. Did Aisha really just give me a love confession? Was that what that was? Or was it just another invitation for sex?
"Love confession dumbass" I heard Regis say from the corner of my room near the door. I looked over at him still confused if not more confused than before. "But why. I mean I don't remember doing anything special" I heard Regis groan before he spoke again.
"Look kid you helped her when no one else would. That does a lot to a person's feelings, especially with your drive it's no wonder she fell for you. Hell, I bet even Haruhime fell too" he said getting out of his bed and stretching. "It might not have been special to you because it's just your nature to help people. But to her, you were a saving Grace she desperately needed" he said finishing his spiel. I was silent at his words still not knowing what to think. "Look kid I'm not saying you need to go to her and accept right away I'm saying think about it. Hell, she herself even said she would wait for you" he said.
I let out a wry chuckle before I spoke. "Heh I'm glad it's you I'm talking to about this and not gramps" I joked. I heard Regis laugh a little before I spoke again. "I don't know what to think honestly. I mean I've felt love and know how to love but not that type of love so it's all brand new to me"
"And does that scare you," Regis asked. "A little yeah"
"And why is that" I was quiet for a moment before I spoke. "Because I'm afraid they'll either sacrifice themselves like gramps did or they'll die like Alfia did," I said bringing my knees up to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. Regis said nothing but jumped up on my bed and sat next to me.
"Neither of those were your fault kid. But I understand that you're scared of them dying" he paused for a second to let the words sink in. "But that just means you'll have to get strong enough to protect them," he said playfully nudging my side with his head. His playfulness caused me to laugh and forget my worried for a moment. "Now come on let's get some breakfast and head into the dungeon so we can see if you can break past 1500," Regis said hopping off the bed. I chuckled before I got out of bed and got dressed.
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"Alright everyone make sure your equipment is secure and ready. The dungeon doesn't like to play nice with me and you're all my responsibility so stick close and you'll be fine" I said to the three women that were getting their gear ready. Aisha had gotten her longsword repaired and she wore no armor as she wouldn't need it on the upper floors. Lena has her scimitar on her left hip with a short sword on her right. Haruhime had her bow strapped to her back as I did and had a chest plate and shoulder guards to protect both her vitals and her shoulders should a monster break past us.
"Yup I'm all ready boss" Lena cheerfully said practically bouncing up and down. I rolled my eyes at the nickname. We then headed off towards the dungeon meeting up with Welf along the way.
"So I see you have an entourage of lovely ladies with you now" he teased. I groaned before responding. "You sound like Regis," I said pinching the bridge of my nose. "Well hey look at it this way. We have an archer a vanguard and a safety net in case we need help" he said pointing out Haruhime as the archer. Lena is the vanguard and Aisha is our safety net.
"Well all we need is a supporter and we'll be golden" I reply. We reached the fountain outside the dungeon to do one last check of our equipment.
"Alright remember what I said stick close and keep your eyes open cause you're about to experience a whole different dungeon. Now we won't be going in too far. This dive will be to break in our new members and see how well our cohesion is" I explained getting nods of agreement from everyone.
"Excuse me Mr adventurer do you need a supporter" I heard a voice behind me. I turned around to look at it seeing a giant backpack in my face. I looked down and saw a prum carrying it.
"Actually yeah it's pretty much what we've been looking for," I said looking down at her. "Names Bell. This is Welf, Aisha, Haruhime, and Lena" I said pointing to each one. "What about the dog," she asked pointing at Regis. "Oh that's Regis he's my bond. Also, don't listen to whatever he says" I say waving Regis off.
"He's just jealous I'm smarter than him," Regis said off to the side. Before the Prum could ask the fabled question I already answered. "Yes, he can talk don't worry about that. Now, what's your name" it took a while for her to wrap her head around a talking dog but she shook herself out of her stupor and spoke.
"Lili's name is Liliruca but I go by Lili," she said. I could feel Regis holding in a laugh but I brushed off the way she referred to herself in the third person. "Alright nice to meet you Lili we're glad to have you. Word of warning however the dungeon doesn't like to play nice with me so stick close to Aisha she'll keep an eye on ya" I told her pointing out to Aisha again.
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??? POV
Where am I? I had awoken in a cabin far from Orario from the looks of it. My mind was fuzzy having trouble remembering what happened. Last thing I remember I was getting stabbed and the next thing I know I'm here. I look around seeing some furniture laying around but no pictures of whoever owned the place. I got up off the floor and looked towards the table seeing a letter addressed to me. I walked over to it and tore it open. I read the letter my eye getting wider and wider with each sentence I read. When I was done I put the letter down and took a deep breath. I was in Babylon practically on the other side of the world and the old man wants me to head back to Orario. Well, at least they all forgot what I did thanks to him. So seeing as I no longer had my falna I began my journey back to Orario.
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Bell POV
I was in the middle guard watching as Lena and Welf went to work. Haruhime, Aisha, and Lili were in the rearguard with Lili dragging monster bodies out of the way to get their magic stones. Haruhime was a good archer being able to hit the monsters in between the gaps Lena and Welf left. Aisha just stood there and I could feel her eyes boring into me not with hate but. But love. Still feels weird saying that.
Crack
I glanced to my right and saw the wall breaking open next to me. Seeing the familiar claws of the war shadow I decided to use a new trick I learned.
Snap
Snapping my fingers together a mix of fire and lighting came out and hit the war shadow right in the face killing it instantly. I then felt a stinging sensation in my fingers. I looked down noticing that I had burned the tip of my thumb and middle finger.
"Alright that'll need some work," I said to myself. It was then that I heard the sounds of fighting had stopped and everyone looked at me shocked. "What?" I asked confused.
"Bell what was that," Welf asked. Luckily there was a break in the fighting allowing us to have this conversation. "Just a spell I created why?"
"YOU CREATED THAT" I heard Lena yell. "Uh yeah? Do y'all not make spells?" I asked confused. I then felt a hand grasp my shoulder.
"Bell nobody can just create spells. The concept of it has been around for centuries now but there have been no recorded cases of someone actually doing it" Aisha explained. I was shocked. "Wait so you mean nobody has created spells before like at all," I asked. A series of No and head shakes gave me my answer.
"Regis you lying asshole," I said to the dog who was currently laughing. "Ha ha oh this is so funny. I can't believe you actually believed me ha ha" he was laughing so hard he had rolled onto his side. I rolled my eyes seriously thinking of kicking him.
"Wait what did he tell you," Welf asked. "This asshole told me anyone could make spells" I angrily said pointing at Regis who was still laughing. "Well I for one think that's amazing master Bell," Haruhime said. I looked at the shy fox girl who was behind Aisha. "Yeah big man I think it's pretty cool that you're able to do that" I heard Lena say behind me. That made me feel a little better knowing they weren't mad just surprised.
"Well that aside I think we should continue my guess is it's only noon," I said. The party agreed and we continued our journey.
Freya POV
My my you just keep getting more and more enticing my dear. "Ottar my dear" I called for my champion. I heard his heavy footsteps behind my chair get closer.
"Yes, my lady," he asked willing to do anything asked. I swirled the wine in my glass before taking a sip. "Prepare a challenge for him. I want to see how bright he'll shine" he agreed to my request without hesitation. Now let's see how good of a show you'll put on. Will you show me any more spells since you're so very good at magic my dear?
Bell POV
I loosed three arrows into the herd of war shadows. Since they were mana arrows they cut through them like butter. Welf using his fire magic unleashed a torrent of flames while Lena was off to the side cutting up killer ants. Lili was working as quickly as she could to move the bodies and take the stones out of them and was doing a really good job. Haruhime was helping Lena kill the killer ants with her bow. After we dealt with this monster party I decided we should head back and everyone agreed.
We turned in our monster stones coming up with a grand total of 100k which was not bad considering our numbers and people's levels. So seeing as how Lili did all the nitty gritty work we all decided to give her half.
"W-what d-did you count this right? Lili asked shocked. "I think I did is that not half?" I asked hoping I counted right. "But why give me half I'm just a supporter?" I looked at her confused. "Why wouldn't we you did all the nitty gritty and took the monster stones out which Regis is thankful for," I said hearing Regis yell in agreement. "W-well thank you" she opened her mouth like she was about to say more but just said thank you again. I then walked back to my group and we said our goodbyes to Welf.
The rest of us then headed back to the blue pharmacy for dinner and to get some rest for tomorrow. When I don't know why I can't really explain it I just felt that Lili was in trouble. So taking off at speeds I didn't know I was capable of Regis and I went in the direction Lili went. Using his nose Regis was able to find her easily getting jumped by some adventurers.
Lili POV
Half. They had given me half of the loot. I've never met adventurers like that before. They seem nice but could they really be nice? Or are they like all the other adventurers? So lost in thought that I didn't see the club heading toward my face.
I felt my nose crack and my ears ring. My vision was blurry and couldn't tell what was going on around me.
"Think you could skip out of us" I heard although it sounded like I was underwater. I felt him kick me down the stairs causing even more pain. Right adventurers are all the same. However, something odd happened. Instead of more beatings, I saw a flash of white. Then the screams of the men up above. Forcing my eyes to open wider I saw Bell standing at the top of the stairs holding the lead guy by the throat. The other two men were down on the ground beaten but alive. Regis came over next to me and nudged my side to see if I was still alive.
"Hey, kid you still alive," he asked. I found it hard to speak so I nodded my head. "Good just wait here and we'll get you some help. After Bell takes out the trash"
I heard a sickening crunch and saw the bone of the man's wrist peeking out through his flesh. Bell then dropped him and slowly walked back down to me my coin pouch in his hand.
"Can you walk?" he asked as he knelt down next to me tiny ice cubes being put on my busted lip. I shook my head no and surprisingly Bell picked me up into his arms and started carrying me.
"Luckily my gods a healer so you'll be ok. You can rest if you need to you won't be hurt anymore" he softly said. I felt my eyes grow heavier and heavier as I slowly drifted to sleep feeling safe for the first time in a long time.
Bell POV
I walked home to the Blue Pharmacy my lip was busted and my hand was broken from the fight but other than that I was alright. I had Lili securely in my arms and Regis was on guard in case we got into another fight. When I arrived home I saw the worried looks of my familia as I set Lili down on the couch so Miach could treat her.
"Bell what happened to miss Lily," Haruhime asked. "She got jumped by some adventurers who then tried to rob her," I said moving out of Miachs way. "And what happened to you," Aisha asked. "I took care of said adventurers," I said setting my hand back in place and hearing a few people wince. I then grabbed a potion and drank it feeling it heal my hands and lip.
"Bell I know what you're thinking but you need to take a breath because this time we don't have a war to cover our ass," Miach said trying to calm me down as he tended to Lili.
"How can I Miach when shit like this happens. Where the hell was the Ganesha or Astraea familia since they're the so called protectors of this city" I angrily said.
"They can't be everywhere at once Bell you know that" Miach calmly said. "Ganesha has over a hundred members and is dedicated to keeping the peace and you're telling me he can't watch over the damn city"
Miach signaled for Nazha to take over to see if any of Lili's bones we couldn't see are broken while he walked over to me. He gently put his hand on my shoulder and looked me directly in the eyes. "Bell I understand you're angry you have a right to be. I'm angry as well and we will get the people responsible for this but it takes time alright. I'm not asking you to not take revenge for this I'm asking for you to wait until Lili wakes up so we can take this to the right people to handle this ok" Miach said sounding like a caring father who understood my anger. I took a deep breath before I spoke.
"Alright. Yeah, you're right I'm sorry for snapping at you" I said taking another deep breath. Miach gave me a gentle smile before patting my shoulder. "I do want my level up though. We don't know what we're dealing with and I want to be as strong as possible if they come for us" I said and saw Miach's smile get even wider. "You know you'll be the record holder right"
"So I don't care about fame if the level up makes me stronger to help more people and keep my familia safe I'll take it," I said determination filling my voice. I didn't know this at the time but apparently, everyone was smiling or either moved by my determination to keep everyone safe. But I did see Miachs smile. "Alright Bell follow me and we'll level you up," he said leading me into a private room.
Well, Bell's pissed, and rightly so as his heroic mindset is once again activated. Now the next chapter will pick up right after this and then Bell turns into a badass and more of Lili's backstory will be revealed and it'll be a little different this time. Also, who is our mysterious stranger? You'll just have to wait and see. Now in case anyone is confused about the timeline here it is.
Day 0- Alfia dies.
Day 1- Bell sets off for Orario.
Day 5- Bell arrives in Orario and joins the Miach familia meeting Astraea and his future advisor as well.
Day 6- Bell registers at the guild and sees how much money Alfia left him as well as pulling Miach out of debt from the Dian Chet familia.
Day 7- Bell heads into the dungeon and gets his ass kicked by a Minotaur. He then meets Alise and Ryu who save his life. Causing him to head home early and find out Miach and Nazha are a couple like he suspected.
Day 8- Bell meets Welf and buys his armor becoming friends with the man.
Day 9- Bell and Welf head into the dungeon encountering a monster party on the 9th floor. After they exit Welf mentions that monsterphilia is tomorrow and he won't be able to go to the dungeon. Miach then asks Bell to help him run that stand while also taking him to meet Mia Grand his aunt of sorts. The silverback then attacks which leads to Bell meeting the orphans.
Day 10- Bell takes a delivery to the eternal white flame where he meets Haruhime and Aisha as gets stuck inside because of a storm that Zeus caused to get him laid. Bell then promises Aisha he will help free Haruhime.
Day 11- Freya's plans to attack Ishtar are moved up because of Bell causing a war to break out. Bell and Aisha fight in which Bell won but not without both being injured. They then meet up with Welf who helps carry Bell to Astraea's home to get patched up leading them to spend the night.
Day 12- Bell and his familia celebrate his victory against Aisha as well as welcoming Aisha, Haruhime, and Lena to the familia. Bell then discovers that he has broken the natural limit for his stats and wonders how high he can go.
Day 13- it was this chapter.
Well, there you go a timeline of events in case you were wondering or confused. Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed love you bye.