Yo, enjoy the chapter. Also, I've started a new story. Go check it out.

Also I don't Danmachi, sad times for sure.

The sound of bare feet slapping on the marbled floor of the Dian Cecht hospital. A barely dressed elf ran out of her hospital room, frantically searching for someone.

"You idiot cat. Look what you've gone and done!"

"Nyam sorry, I didn't think she'd leap out of bed, Nya!"

Anya tried to explain her reason to Lunor for telling the recently awakened Ryu where Bell Cranel was being kept.

"Wait up Syr, Meow!" Chloe shouted after her friend as the grey-haired waitress began to chase after the Elf. The three recent rescuers began running after Syr and Ryu.

"That idiot elf!"

"Doesn't Nya realise she's basically naked, Nya!"

As the three girls raced after their friend, a small clink hit the marble floor behind them.

'Why are they making so much noise so early?'

The half-elf's irritated thought would be answered shortly as he slowly made his way in the same direction as the waitresses.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKK!"

""Don't look!""

"Ouch!"

Ryu's squeal from her hospital robe falling to the floor was accompanied by two simultaneous slaps to Bell's poor face though they did serve their purpose of covering his eyes from the naked woman. However, The Goddess of the Hearth and the Prum supporter were not to be let off freely for this transgression.

"Don't hit an injured patient!"

The Dea Saint was the top dog in her hospital. She would let you know if you did something she did not like or go against her commands.

"Ryu!"

Syr finally caught up to her friend, seeing the vulnerable state she had got herself.

As Anya, Chloe and Lunor arrived, Dea Saint had finished reprimanding Hestia and Lili and now had her gaze turned to the elf.

"What are doing out of bed!"

Amid made her way over to her patient, grabbing the disrobed white cloth and handing it over to Ryu, who was still too preoccupied with rolling into a ball of red embarrassment.

"Th-thanks," Lunor said as she took the hospital gown off the Doctor and tried to dress Ryu who, after being reassured by Syr that Bell wasn't looking, began to stand up.

"Now, Ms Lion, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Mr Cranel still needs to rest," Amid says while glancing at the two other girls behind her. "You also need your rest."

"But…"

"That is not a question or suggestion, it is an order. Understood!"

Ryu just hung her head and resigned herself to her fate for the next couple of days. She turned around and began to make her way down the corridor until a sound reached her ears.

*Clink*

*Clink Clink*

Ryu looked up to see Nathan walking towards her, except he wasn't. He was more like hopping towards them as his left leg was suspended in the air surrounded by what could be described as a steel cage.

"N-Nathan?" Ryu asked nervously. She had not seen the boy in a while and had no knowledge of him coming down to rescue her. In fact, she had no idea of what happened at all. She was hoping to get back to her room and have her friends fill her in on what happened.

But her mind went blank as she looked at the boy's face. Even with his hair down and the weird black sunglasses covering his eyes, his face was not fully covered, which meant his wound was exposed.

Even those like Lunor, Anya and Chloe who had seen it every day for the past 5 days were not used to it.

When Hestia had first seen it, she almost fainted. Then she cried and moaned that Nathan wouldn't tell her what transpired while in Knossos, only finishing with that it wasn't over yet.

"What's with all the noise?" The boy asked as he hopped his way up to the door, two metal crutches in each hand helping him get around. As he walked into the room, to say he was in a sorry state would be a proper assessment. The wound on his eye still stood out. His hair was a mess and his imprisoned ankle alongside the crutches only attested to how much he had been through.

"Oh Nathan, why are you hear?" Hestia asked seeing her child walk in, doing her best to not look at his flesh wound. She failed.

"I heard all this noise and came to check it out."

"Sk-Skias Alf, I thought I told you to rest."

Ryu picked up on the awkwardness that Amid had in her voice when addressing Nathan, something that everyone had noticed over the past few days whenever they interacted. It was almost like they had a secret that was only between the two.

Nathan looked over at Amid, his eyes covered by the sunglasses he had requested to have before talking to anyone. The awkwardness went both ways. Amid had found out about Nathan's secret. Nathan had asked her to not ask too many questions until Braver came to re-visit, something he had said he would do after he came just after he was brought back while the half-elf was still unconscious. Apparently, he wanted to see how the half-elf was doing and asked to be notified when Nathan woke up as he wanted to talk.

'He's probably not happy about me taking down most of his Familia with just my anger.'

As Nathan thought to himself, he didn't realise he was prolonging an unbearable silence.

"Uhm, Nathan? Miss Amid asked you a question."

It was Bell who managed to arouse Nathan back to reality. He was still uncomfortable with the boy's wounds but felt like he couldn't say anything with his arm plastered and wrapped in a steel contraption for good measure.

"Hmm, oh, yeah. I got bored."

The simple answer was clearly not enough for the doctor who had managed to get over her anxiety and began to berate the half-elf, though it did manage to defuse the awkward tension.

Assuming that Nathan wanted to be around his Familia for a bit, the waitresses went to leave, with Syr grabbing Ryu's hand. However, their progress was immediately halted when a metal crutch blocked her path.

"Actually, I want to talk to Ryu."

This earnt some bemused looks from all.

"What do you mean? What do you want to talk to me about?"

"Private."

With that the only thing he added on, Nathan turned and started hopping back down the hallway. He gave a quick glance back as to motion for Ryu to follow him. The elf complied with a perplexed look on her face. Bell had the same look on his face as he watched Lunor close his door as the girls left with Ryu and Nathan, leaving him once again in the company of Hestia, Lili and Amid.

"Now Mr Cranel, I still haven't finished my check-up that was interrupted."

"Hey Missy, you're not going to be touching my Bell anywhere inappropriate?"

Amid simply rolled her eyes at the comment made by the Goddess. She had heard it before many times.

"I assure you Lady Hestia; I am a professional and take my work seriously. If I was to need to touch him there, I would have already done so and not in the company of anyone else."

Though she did want to get some enjoyment from time to time with a quick tease, plus the bickering of the Goddess was welcomed as it took her mind off the half-elf that had been plaguing her.

"Nathan, what is it you wanted to talk about?" Ryu once again asked.

"Like I said, in private."

"We are, no one else can hear us out here."

Nathan simply turned and motioned towards the four women behind the elf.

"They can."

"Excuse me, you can trust us you know. We spent days together in the dungeon."

"This isn't about the dungeon." Nathan shut Lunor down.

"If it's about Bell, I believe I have a right to hear… as his close friend."

Syr's comment made Nathan turn to look at her. She could tell he was staring directly into her eye.

"One, it isn't about Bell either."

The boy started as he turned his body around to face the woman. She didn't like how his eyes were still hidden even though Lunor, Anya and Chloe mentioned several times they had seen them. It was a clear sign of distrust.

"And the second?" Syr asked.

"Even if it was about Bell, what makes you so special that I'd tell you."

Syr didn't like that, not one bit. It was a personal attack. There was nothing from their brief history that would indicate Nathan having an issue with Syr, so why?

"Oh and why do you say that?"

Syr played it casually, acting indifferent to the comment, trying to add a bit of playfulness to her voice. But to her frustration, the boy gave her nothing except a grin that had no purity or kindness behind it.

Freya wanted nothing more than to charm the boy and find out why he was being this way towards her. It was clear to all, except Bell, that Syr liked Bell, including Nathan. This was clearly some sort of attack directed at her feelings towards the boy.

"Like I said, it doesn't concern Bell anyway so it don't matter."

Nathan was enjoying this. He always got an itchy feeling from the waitress and after his suspicions were found true, in that she was related to the Freya Familia, and alongside the fact that from the information he had gathered, Freya herself was interested in Bell. This meant that Syr was working with her to tear Bell away from Hestia. He wouldn't allow it. He would fight back and he made sure Syr knew it.

As he led Ryu away, leaving the other women behind they started to whisper to each other about what he wanted her for, saying some things the elf was thinking herself.

It wasn't until they finally reached his room and Ryu closed the door behind her would she get her answer.

"Ok, now that we are alone, what is it?"

Ryu was not happy that Nathan didn't trust her friends with this and she was especially displeased with how he had talked to Syr. Her change in tone made that clear to the half-elf.

She watched him lean his crutches up against the wall as he sat down in a wooden chair. It was weird to see the half-elf with crutches as she still hadn't learnt how he had come to be like that. She would soon find out.

"I'm going to get straight to the point. The reason I wanted it to be just us two is that I'm not here to talk to Ryu, the waitress."

This confused Ryu and then her eyes grew in realisation.

'Does he know?'

"I want to talk to Ryu Leon, the Gale Wind."

At the mention of her last name and Alias, Ryu's attention was now heightened to its max and was completely directed towards the boy.

"How do you know me?"

Though she posed it as a question, Nathan felt it as a command that needed an answer.

"I… I ain't telling the full story, yet. But I've been in Orario for 8 years, coming up 9. I knew who the Astrea Familia were and let's be honest, the fact you've gotten away with such a basic disguise is amazing."

Though Nathan wouldn't mention that he had used the same technique of dying his hair to go undetected, with the elf being the main inspiration for his disguise.

Ryu stared at the half-elf. This made Nathan very uncomfortable. He had gone out on a limb here and had attracted the attention of what was his main enemy for years. But he didn't care if it meant Evilus would fall and he would see Knossos crash and burn with all those affiliated with it trapped inside. He knew she hated them as much as he did and she would be a massive help. He was going to make sure this time, he would succeed.

"What is it you want?"

Even though she repeated her question from earlier, the meaning, along with the look in her eye.

"We attacked it."

And so Nathan began his lie. One of the many stories he had made for times like this. As always, adding in or starting with the truth always made it sound more believable.

"Attacked what?"

"Evilus' hideout, Knossos."

This was all he needed to grab her attention. What he didn't expect was her response.

"You were a part of that as well."

"As well?"

"Andromeda invited me along. That was how I got to the 25th floor. I followed a group that had escaped from the attack and caught up to them there."

Nathan stayed quiet. Finn never mentioned this. There was a good chance he didn't even know she took part as not even he had seen her and he was near the Hermes Familia at the start. If Finn did know, then he probably thought mentioning the Gale Wind to an ex-Evilus member was probably a bad idea. So Nathan could understand why he hadn't been told.

"Why were you there?" Ryu asked, her eyes sharp like a falcon.

"You think you're the only one to be hurt by them?" Nathan retorted back.

This was the truth he weaved into his sob story to make it more believable but by no means would he tell Ryu the truth about who he was. He had no intention of her ever finding out as he believed it would end in one of them dead. He didn't plan on making Bell's rescue for nothing, especially just after he saved her.

"What do you mean?"

The comment hit home with the elf. She had not thought that Nathan would have been caught up in Evilus' mess but if she were to believe that he had been in Orario for 8 years, then he would've been there when they attacked.

"The reason I wasn't part of my Familia's expedition was that I worked with the Loki Familia. You know about the Xenos, don't you?"

Ryu nodded. She had not forgotten about their existence nor the fact that Bell had chosen to protect them.

"The Hestia Familia have sworn to protect them and Braver wanted to use them when attacking Knossos. I said I would help them to make sure the Xenos wouldn't be abused and also so I could get some revenge."

"Revenge?"

Ryu saw the way Nathan became uncomfortable as he fidgeted in his seat. She had hit something.

"They took… someone important from me."

Ryu related to the boy for obvious reasons and this led to regret and guilt for bringing it up. She knew better than anyone that pain.

"Is this all you wanted to talk about, our past?"

However, Ryu was still on edge about the boy, just as she had been since she first saw him. She could tell from experience that he hadn't told her the full truth.

"It failed."

"What?"

That was all that was needed for the fire in Ryu's eyes to ignite fury.

"How!"

"A trap."

The short exchange was met by a dreaded silence. Both had their fists scrunched up, one in anger the other in frustration.

"So… what do you want from me?"

"Braver is planning another attack."

Ryu's eyes widened.

"…You in?"

Ryu just looked at the boy. They both exchanged a look. It was a look of shared pain and memories, though Ryu would not know how many they actually shared. They were both victims of Evilus and both wanted nothing more than to destroy their main enemy. At that moment, Ryu felt like she understood just a bit more about the boy.

"Of course!"

As Nathan watched the Gale Wind leave his room, he breathed a sigh of relief. He let go of the knife he had held behind his back, just in case.

He hated talking with Ryu, it only ever brought back bad memories. He was glad his tactic of getting her to sympathise with him had worked and that he even gained some trust from the woman he still feared.

As he got up to go lie in his bed, he wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. As he was alone once again, he decided he had nothing better to do. So he began to focus.

He thought of what just happened and everything that he had learnt. He remembered what Revis had told him and how they had failed. He felt his anger rise and this is where his training came in.

Since he couldn't heal his ankle as he had completely used every drop of energy, he was busy regaining his strength. It had been a couple of days now and he felt a lot better so he began to see how well he could handle his emotions and use them.

Nathan began to focus that anger on his body and forced his body to start healing himself. He had managed to subside the pain on the right side of his face but as he feared, it hadn't healed. His theory was that Barca had turned himself into a monster made of cursed energy, it wasn't a normal injury. While he could deal with the smaller curses, such as the blood attack he spewed, a major curse attack was too much for him. So now, just like the ones that littered his back, he had gained another scar that would never fully heal and remain a permanent reminder of another failure.

'Just another thing to add to the pile of shit I suppose.'

Just as he began to try and fix his ankle, he heard a knock at his door.

Hestia peered her head past the door. Looking straight forward, she saw her child lying down on his bed, his left leg raised.

When she first saw him a few days ago, she burst into tears. His face was scarred beyond anything she could believe. His body had turned cold and was limp, almost like he was dead. He had been put under emergency care more drastically than Bell and that elf. Though just as she feared, there was nothing the Dian Cecht Hospital could do to get past his absolute resistance skill.

She had thought of removing his falna but thought better of it. If she removed it then all that power that was the reason he was still alive would put his life in even more danger.

Even the famed talent and skilled Dea Saint said she couldn't do anything. Apparently, she had already tried but to no avail even though she and the other nurses had not seen her do it. A nurse called Bernadette backed her up and Hestia could tell she wasn't lying but also that she wasn't telling the full truth.

Hestia sighed at the sight. Somehow in only 3 days, Nathan had returned from the dead to be able to hop around like all that had happened was a little falling accident.

'He truly is incredible in many ways, I just wished he could see them.'

"Hey Lady Hestia, what is it you want?" The boy asked, curious as to why he was getting some attention over Bell.

"You finished your talk with the elf."

The boy of few words just nodded.

"Did it go well?"

"Fairly."

"Good. I just thought, would you like me to update your falna? I bet you got a lot of experience from what you've been through, it might help you recover faster."

Nathan smiled at his Goddess. He truly missed what it felt like to have someone actually care for you and this time he couldn't trace a hint of it being fake as well.

"Sure." He said with a smirk as he began to take off his top.

Hestia gave a small smile back as she made her way over, no longer scared of his scarred back, though it still bothered her. Not as much, though, as how she could see through the strong front the half-elf was putting up. It was the actual reason she came to see the boy. How he tried to hide a certain shakiness in his voice or the way he was clearly on edge at all times.

As she allowed a drop of her blood to land on the boy's back, unlocking all his secrets, she finally got a glimpse into why.

"Apart from the Dionysus Familia, the rest of us didn't suffer any casualties."

"But they had to leave fellow adventurers behind, that'll haunt 'em for a while."

Finn listened to Riveria and Gareth give their assessment of the current situation. He placed his head on top of his conjoined hands as he went back into his mind.

The situation was not good. They had been beaten, badly. Finn believed that he had predicted all the possible moves his opponent could make but this Enyo had completely changed the game. Finn was now playing a war game against a God, one that they knew nothing of. This was the worst outcome.

"Finn?"

"Hmm. Yes, Riveria?" Finn looked up at his vice-captain, wondering what it was she wanted.

"Any news on Nathan of Hestia Familia?"

Finn raised his eyebrow at her. He wasn't surprised that she had asked this, and neither was Gareth judging from him giving off no reaction either.

"Nothing yet Riveria but it has been a couple of days since I last checked."

"Lads probably awake then. Hearing about what he's already lived through, this shouldn't be too much."

Barca's boast on how he contributed to the torturing of the half-elf had not left those adventurers' minds.

"Gareth, he was in an awful state coming out of the invasion and then he ran down to the 37th floor straight after. I don't believe I could even do something like that, not even mentioning the mental state he was in at the time."

Riveria was coming to the boy's defence, again. Finn knew why. Riveria hadn't directly told him but he had already guessed it and Riveria knew it.

"And yet he was strong enough to take down most of our Familia and put all the executives in a frozen state. It felt like I was in the presence of a floor boss, all from just a look and a burst of bloodlust."

Finn brought up how the half-elf had left most of the Loki Familia unconscious.

"It was worse than that Finn and that ain't something I'd call bloodlust. That was something… something else entirely."

Gareth made his stance known on the matter, again. Conversations about the boy had become almost impossible to avoid at this point. Even when they referred to it, the younger ones like Tiona still shuddered. When those that had been knocked out were asked about what they remembered all they could answer with was that they felt something they had only experienced in the dungeon. An inch away from death.

Some beast people said they felt like their most primal fears had been attacked and they had been reduced to the mere animals they had some relation to.

Riveria could never come up with an excuse apart from that he had gone through a lot that day, though it was Ais who mentioned what Revis had said towards Nathan that had put him in such a way.

'I understand being taunted about a lost loved one is horrible but not even my Hell Finegas can get anywhere near that level of anger.' Finn thought as he looked over at his two closest friends. He was glad that Riveria wasn't there when Loki talked about what Thanatos had told her.

"I'm going to check on Lefiya."

Once again not being able to come up with a proper argument in defence of the half-elf, Riveria solemnly walked out of Finn's office and made her way to her pupil's room, knowing that there was little she could do to help.

Only when Gareth and Finn stopped hearing the high elf's footsteps did the dwarf turn back around to face the Prum captain.

"I think ya right Finn. That lad has suddenly come important to the lass."

"It's the only reason I can think of. Along with those Jade eyes, it must be."

"The question then is… how are they related."

"Who knows but if they really are, how do we tell her about what Loki heard from Thanatos."

Gareth tensed up.

"If what Loki reported back was true, then that lad is more hassle than we thought."

As Riveria walked through the corridors of Twilight Manor, the half-elf that had been stuck in her mind more and more continued to occupy her thoughts once again. She wanted to worry more about Lefiya and those that had been injured. She wanted to concentrate on preparing for the second attack that they were preparing… but she couldn't.

'Those eyes. Only one type of people in the world can ever possess that colour."

The jade eyes of the Alf forest, along with their beautiful jade hair, were synonymous with the elf royal family.

'How is he here? Why is he here? How did he get with Evilus? What happened to him?'

All these thoughts had lingered in Nine hell's head. Whenever she tried to answer them they all led back to deciphering who he was

'Who is he? Maybe he is on Uncle Raphael's side? It's a high possibility he could just be from a branch of the family that doesn't even reside in the Alf forest.'

But then a possibility reared its ugly head once more. She didn't know if it was the outcome she wanted most or least but it was the one that had never left her mind.

What if he is Celia's… No. No, he can't be. That's impossible… he's dead.'

So Riveria continued walking towards Lefiya's room, trying to push the thought of her sister out of her mind and her lost son that vanished over 8 years ago.

It had now been a week since the first invasion on Knossos had taken place. Little by little, the force protecting Orario had begun to reconfigure and move past the failed attempt, though it was still fresh in their mind.

But there was no time to waste mourning the dead. The leaders of each allied faction knew this all too well and, through the Guild, Finn had set up a meeting.

The 30th floor of Babel was mainly used for the Denatus or the discussions of Gods but was now being occupied by some of the strongest adventurers in the city. The only exception was that of the Freya Familia, who at this moment had no part to play nor had any intention of having one.

The discussion being held was about the organisation of the second attack on Knossos. Finn informed all the others of what they had figured out. The magic circle, Nidhogg, the six spirits and Enyo.

Shakti sat back in her chair, contemplating what she heard. Tsubaki had a rare look of seriousness, her exposed eye showing no sign of playfulness that she normally had.

Fels was trying to digest what he had heard, while also worrying about how Braver planned on using the Xenos this time.

"You said there were six spirits but you have only divided us into 5 teams? What are you planning?"

Ankusha asked as she narrowed her eyes at the ring leader. From past experiences with the Prum, she knew how crafty the Captain of the Loki Familia could be.

"-The Xenos will do it."

The comment shook the room. Shakti and Tsubaki's eyes widened in surprise. Fel's mouth would've been open if he had one.

Finn braced for the replies that he expected from the two first-class adventurers but to his surprise, and relief, the two accepted it.

"It is Ganesha's will to help them."

"I don' mind and I've got a friend, Welfy, who knows them."

Finn breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that his plan to include the Xenos had been accepted.

"Is that all right with you, Fels?"

"Yes, I believe that would be fine. I thank you for putting trust in us Braver."

Finn smiled back and once again began to go through the plan until Shakti abruptly stopped him.

"Finn I have another question?"

"…Yes, what is it Shakti?"

"What about… him?"

"Him?"

"…"

Only Tsubaki didn't know what Shakti meant by that but Fels and Finn both understood what the Ganesha Familia captain meant.

"Is that the guy who was meant to be occupying that chair o'er there?" Tsubaki asked pointing her finger to the empty chair that had been occupying a space at the table since the start of the meeting.

Finn nodded. "Yes, I had invited him to join us but I have not received a response so I can't say where he is."

"Who's he? Why are ya being so mysterious about him as well?" Tsubaki was confused and gaining suspicions. This was not good for Finn and was annoyed but also surprised that Shakti had done this.

'Sorry Braver but I still don't trust him. I want him on the table for the world to see for what he was a part of.'

Shakti was still in turmoil with Nathan. While she had accepted working with him and realised his usefulness and utility, she could not forgive him, for Ardi. She was shocked that Finn was so easily accepting him not realising that he was in the same boat as her.

Tsubaki watched on as the two captains stared each other down, getting annoyed herself at being left in the dark.

"Oi, I'm putting my Familia into danger 'ere. I deserve to know who I'm askin' them to fight with."

"I concur," Shakti said, not giving Finn much choice.

After a second of silence and contemplation of risking losing a major ally, Finn Deimne caved in.

"Fine. Cyclops, being part of Hephaistos Familia, I assume you have some relatively close relationship with Hestia Familia?"

"Y-yes?" Tsubaki said, being taken off guard that Welf's Familia was mentioned. Though a second later, her eyes widened. She was smart enough to put the pieces together.

"…So that's why he was so beaten up and not part of their expedition then."

Tsubaki had thought this was a possibility but she didn't know the half-elf was a major player in this game.

"But wasn't Skias Alf just there to make sure the Xenos weren't mistreated?"

That was what Tsubaki had concluded if her theory of Nathan had been a part of Knossos was correct. Someone who was on the Xenos' side there to be a bridge between adventurers and monsters.

"Partly… but that wasn't the main reason."

"The main reason?"

Tsubaki felt a cold shiver run up her spine at the look Finn and Shakti held. Fel's head looked down, his skull being covered up with his black robe.

"I'm not sure how to tell you this but…"

"I was part of Evilus!"

-CRSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

All heads shot towards the sound of a chair being flung backwards. Their eyes glued at the now-standing Ankusha who had stood up with such force that she had sent her marble chair hurtling towards the wall, smashing it to pieces. The reason for this was the half-elf that was standing right in front of her.

No one moved. They all simultaneously realised what just happened. The half-elf had not only snuck into a meeting of first-tier adventures and the strongest sage in Orario but also he had stood right behind the Ankusha herself, the woman in question especially thinking this.

'How? He could've killed me without me….'

That thought almost made Shakti throw up as fear rattled through her mind as she stood face to face with the half-elf they had just been talking about. Dark sunglasses blocked any emotion from his eyes, the gash in his face still as painful-looking as before.

"H-how…?" That was all she managed. Her hand had moved to her whip but her eyes were focused on the boy's right hand nestled on his sword, telling her not to move. She felt like she would lose the race.

"Through the window, as I normally do."

"What window…?" Finn asked, still not used to the boy appearing out of nowhere, especially in this scenario. It only took a quick look around to realise what Nathan meant. The giant open wall stared back at him as he put together what the boy had done.

'He climbed all the way up here!'

"That's not what I meant!"

Shakti had recovered and was now giving the half-elf a death stare, her hand still firmly grasping the end of her whip.

The boy only stared back, his death stare far overpowering the Ankusha's, though, to her credit, she didn't back down.

"N-Nathan. What'd you say?"

Tsubaki's mind had finally caught back up to her after witnessing something that terrified her.

"I said I was a part of Evilus. That's the main reason I'm… helping with the invasion." He replied, a sense of unease as he spoke. Tsubaki caught her breath at the statement.

"Why have you only just now turned up?" Finn asked.

Nathan's response was to glance at the captain of the Hephaistos Familia.

"What's the point of a secret if you tell everyone."

Then he turned towards Shakti and sneered

"And the feeling's mutual, Ankusha!"

That was all he needed to say for the true message to get through. Shakti clenched her fist, not liking to be read so easily.

"I don't want the thing you call trust. It wouldn't mean anything!"

The woman's response seemed to quieten the boy, Nathan giving no response to the harsh comment.

"Anyway, now that you're here, how about you join us? I assume you've been listening in to our discussion for a bit."

Nathan looked over to Finn. Giving one last look to Shakti, he moved over to the chair that had been put out for him.

"WAIT, WAIT, WAIT! WE ARE NOT GLOSSING OVER THIS!"

Tsubaki shouted out at the two men that seemed to want to move past the massive confession Nathan had given. She stared the boy down as he walked up to the chair.

"Are you being serious? You were part of…them" She said, a tone of disgust in her voice as she couldn't even say the name of the group.

The response she got was a nod.

"Does Welf…"

"Yes, Welf and the rest of them know. I told them about a month ago."

"And?" Tsubaki said, not liking what she was hearing.

"I'm still part of Hestia Familia... somehow," Nathan spoke quietly, mumbling the last part.

The quick response was all the blacksmith got, telling her she wasn't going to get much more. But before she could interrogate the half-elf anymore, Finn chimed in.

"How much?"

This grabbed Nathan's attention, meeting the Prum's azure, stern gaze.

"What?"

"How much have you told them?"

Finn wanted to know if what Loki had found out was true. If it was then he would be within his right to strike down the boy right now. The response was enough to give clarification.

The death stare that the Finn received, while not as bad as the one before, was enough for his muscles to tighten and his blood to run cold. The others could feel the pressure from the boy emanating from his body. It was enough to suffocate lower levels. But this time, The Braver was prepared and he did not back down.

"I would like an answer, Skias Alf."

The mention of Nathan's Alias was a massive thing for Finn to do. The first thing that started this alliance was the agreement of the Prum not to use the boy's Alias which clearly made him uncomfortable.

Giving away his identity without his consent and now this. With this breach in their very fragile trust, Nathan now let out his bloodlust.

"-CLANNNGG!"

If Shakti had managed to hide her nervousness before, now she made it clear. Sweat dripped from behind her blue hair as her whip clattered to the marble floor. Finn had also reached for his golden spear that was resting on the side of the table, though he remained seated.

Tsubaki and Fels stood by as the level 5 and level 6 faced off against the outcasted half-elf. His response was to just quietly look back, both his hands grasping the hilts of his swords. Though only a few seconds of silence lasted as the boy moved his hands away and up to his head.

Finn had seen the boy's ears twitch, making himself become more wary of his surroundings as he wondered what the boy heard that he hadn't. But he heard nothing as the half-elf grasped the sides of his face.

"shut up, shut up, shut up…"

His palms covered his ears as his fingers grasped at his bleached-white hair, almost as if he was going to pull it out.

"shut up, shut up, shut up…"

"Oi, are you…" Tsubaki began to ask as the light clank of metal indicated that Shakti had begun to lower her weapon.

The boy's grip tightened as he half bent over, knocking off his glasses.

"Shut up, Shut up, Shut up, Shut up, SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"

"N-Nathan, what's wrong?" Fels asked as he stood up and started making his way over to the Hestia Familia member.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The sound of the boy's voice changing was a clear showcase of him losing control that only Finn and Tsubaki had witnessed.

"LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!"

Nathan erupted in one of his rare moments of volatile shouting as he slammed his fist into the large marble table.

A large cracking noise echoed around the open room as the table splintered and cracked as if branches on a tree were sprouting out.

Tsubaki and Finn moved out of their chairs as chunks of marble fell at their feet though their experienced, battle-hardened eye never left the culprit.

As they saw the table crumble to the floor, standing behind the rubble was the half-elf. Crouched down, his body seeming to shake as his hands still were clamped around his pointed ears. His voice had withdrawn back down to a mere whisper as he continued to mutter for the silent room to be quiet.

"Finn, do you hear anything?" Shakti asked, her eyes wide in confusion and shock.

Finn didn't respond, only giving a shake of the head.

"Me neither."

"Nor do I."

Tsubaki and Fels answered Ankusha's question. They all stared at the boy. As they watched him mutter to himself and hunched down, they all thought of a word they thought they would never use when describing the ex-Evilus member.

'He looks so…'

'''…vulnerable.'''

As the nearest one to him, Fels restarted his way to Nathan, now worried for the half-elf. He was the one who had known about the boy the longest outside Evilus, even before Hermes. He was the one who first saw the outcome of what he had done to escape their grasp and had been ordered by Ouranos to keep watch over him, though he failed as after Nathan escaped from the Hostess of Fertility, he could never find him. The next time he saw him was in the War Game.

And he here was now, shivering and scared. As Fels drew closer he realised that the boy's eyes were not hidden anymore. He couldn't see them as the half-elf's head was bent downwards, his bleached hair covering the Sage's eye line.

"Nathan, are you alright?"

Fels had reached the boy. He had thought of putting his hand on the half-elf but decided against it, thinking it was not a good idea with the state Nathan was in.

"Don't you hear it?"

The voice was a mere whisper but Fels was close enough to make it out.

"Hear what?"

"Can't you hear them?"

The boy repeated his question.

"Nathan, none of us can hear what you are hearing. Please tell us and maybe we can help."

"None… none of you wants to help me. No one ever… wants to help… me."

The other three had made their way over and were now close enough to listen. Finn had wanted to speak up and retort the statement but after their brief confrontation, he felt like he couldn't rebuke it right now.

'He probably isn't in a good mindset right now. No matter how much he has been through before, he is still a child and that's a lot for anyone to go through, let alone anyone at that age.'

Finn remembered one of the times Riveria had come to defend the boy once again and it wasn't until now Finn realised that she was right. The boy was barely considered an adult in their society and yet he had gone through so much. The fact that he had been so relaxed and controlled before was now a miracle when Finn thought back on it.

'He must have some skill to stay focused, to help him stay concentrated.'

Finn's deductive work was as brilliant as ever. But as he had figured out about Nathan having some skill helping him maintain control over his mental state by looking at the vulnerable 15-year-old, he couldn't know what the Goddess Hestia had found a few days prior.

"What can you hear?" Tsubaki asked gently, trying not to agitate half-elf any further.

When Hestia began working on the boy's Falna, she began re-living his past week since she had updated it.

"…singing."

The boy's response confused those around him, all looking at one another with the same look of confusion.

Hestia held in her gasps of horror and shock at Nathan's fights. His numbers began to re-arrange themselves.

"Singing? What singing?" Shakti asked cautiously.

Hestia stopped herself from crying but couldn't help letting out a cry in terror as she saw the explanation for his wound that scarred his face.

"Their… singing. Always singing."

"Who… oh."

"What is it, Braver?"

Fels, Shakti and Tsubaki all looked over at the Prum as he realised what Nathan was on about.

Hestia saw the way Nathan struggled through the pain in his fight against the red-haired woman and in his desperate attempt at keeping Riveria, his aunt, safe.

"Nathan, are you sure? What are they saying?"

Finn didn't have time to answer Fels as he realised the severity of the situation.

"Non-stop. They won't shut up!"

"Who won't!"

"Finn Deimne, explain what you have found out!" Shakti asked as Tsubaki focused on Nathan.

Hestia watched in shock at what Nathan turned into as he began his descent into the dungeon to rescue the rest of her Familia. She knew she would have to deal with Loki about that soon.

"It's the spirits, they've begun to sing."

"""Huh!"""

Finn Deimne had worked it out. He realised Nathan could hear the spirits sing in Knossos and that could only mean one thing.

"The six spirits have begun their chant."

"That means…?"

"Yes…" Finn said, finishing off Shakti who was the second to figure it out.

"…We need to attack as soon as we can."

"When will that be?" Fels asked.

Finn brought his thumb up to his mouth, feeling the throb that had constantly been there for the past few days suddenly spike.

"To protect Orario, we are going to have to attack tonight!"

Shakti and Tsubaki held their breath. Fels stood up straight. They all agreed with Braver and they all silently looked at each other in agreement.

"I don't care…"

Suddenly their gazes redirected towards Nathan.

"What?" Shakti asked.

Nathan began standing back up, his hands slowly moving away from his face as he started to scrunch into fists.

Hestia was taken aback when she felt the boy's presence almost evaporate as for a brief moment, her reading of his past went dark.

"I don't care about Orario."

Finn was surprised that Shakti was shocked by the boy's statement. But then his eyes widened as the boy faced them.

As Hestia finally finished with the boy's update, a small smile formed on her face as she stopped tears from falling from her eyes.

'You've been through a lot, haven't you?'

Hestia began tracing the products of the half-elf's efforts onto a sheet of paper she had brought with her.

"Well done Nathan…"

"… Would you like to?"

She told Nathan what had happened as she handed him the piece of paper.

"I believe this is your final status…"

Nathan skimmed over the sheet; he was content with it. Preferably, he would get them a bit higher but he couldn't afford that right now. Besides, it wouldn't matter afterwards.

"Your options are…"

The four members of the meeting were met with a bone-chilling sight. The pupil was shrunk down as it was surrounded by a lake of dark Jade. But the most notable thing was the outline of his eyes. It was almost as if a small barrier had formed around each eye, completely black.

Hestia listened to what Nathan chose. He only had two options. Both clearly had their uses but she knew why he had picked this one.

As she began to apply it, she noticed something happen with one before. Something was wrong with his mental fortification.

"I'm not doing this to save Orario!"

"Then why…?" Tsubaki asked. Finn and Fels already knew the answer as they both witnessed Nathan carry out his goal.

"It's like they are mocking me for failing!" Nathan said, seemingly ignoring the smith's question.

"Answer her!" Shakti wouldn't let it go. She loved her city and was devoted to protecting it and she wasn't going to let someone who helped in its destruction get away.

Hestia could do nothing as saw what was happening to the development ability. The only thing she could do was worry. The letter next to it was still there, it hadn't increased but it hadn't gone away so why?

Nathan turned to face Shakti, almost making her take a step back.

"I'm here to make sure every last one of them dies."

Hestia was scared. Another part of his Falna that she couldn't decipher but this time it was in his magic. She didn't know whether to be happy for him that he had gotten a second magic spell but it was the same symbols as the one that was on the skill she couldn't decipher, meaning they were linked. Even though she was new to this compared to other deities, she had still been updating statuses for almost half a year and she had never heard of something like this. Then there was his Mental fortification ability.

As Finn watched the half-elf jump out of the window of the tallest tower in the world, his mind was trying to come to terms with his newfound knowledge.

"I'm going too."

The other three turned to face the Loki Familia captain.

"Where are you going?" Shakti asked.

"Somewhere that I think is necessary, sorry but we don't have as much time as we thought."

As Finn left the chamber, leaving the others to contemplate more about Skias Alf and to deal with the broken table of the Gods, the image of the boy's eyes entered his mind.

'They might be the same colour, but that is all they share with Riveria's.'

Finn got to the elevator, a machine that could take the Prum to the location he wanted, no, needed to go to.

"Congratulations Nathan."

That was all Hestia could say to the boy as she handed him another sheet of paper that she had borrowed from a nearby table.

As she watched the half-elf study his Falna once more, she saw no signs of happiness or pride but now she could guess why. Why he had been acting strong earlier and his shakiness and twitchiness that only a God could pick up on.

'Why has his mental Fortification faded, almost as if… as if it was breaking."

With a worried glance towards her child, she didn't know what was next for the boy except that it would prove vital in directing his future. She vowed to herself to make sure, even if she couldn't help or fight for him, she would always be there with a home and open eyes for him. Little did she know this would be the last time she would see him for almost a week.

As Nathan made his way to an alley in Daedalus Street, one that was abandoned and conveniently close to the door to Knossos, he pulled out the crumpled piece of paper.

He looked at the symbol of the Hearth on top and wondered if his Familia were worried about him. He quickly got rid of that thought, knowing he should only focus on one thing but why was that so hard? Looking at his status once again wouldn't suddenly bring any answers.

His new magic slot was most likely linked to his skill that unlocked itself, something that Nathan didn't like as it meant he was still becoming more and more like how Goddess Hel wanted him to be. Other than that, it looked fine, so why wasn't he feeling fine?

'It won't matter after tonight anyway.'

Nathan gave one last glance at his mental fortification ability and the scribble of symbols in his magic slot before scrunching his status sheet back into his pocket as he rested. He gave one last squeeze of his jade necklace that he took from his drawer and pulled his neck muzzle over the top as he felt the air get a bit chilly, not that it mattered much to him now, it hadn't for almost 2 years. It had been a while since he had been given a proper moment of peace and quiet, by himself.

'I've been fine with this for the last 5 years… so why now does it hurt… being alone.'

With his final thought lingering in his mind, he braced himself for what was to be his final attack on Knossos.

Name: Nathan

Race: Half-elf

Lv. 5

Development abilities:

Instinct: F-E

Heightened Senses: G-F

Mental Fortification: F

Spirit Healing: I

Str: B782-A807

Def: C601-C648

Dex: B790-A819

Agi: A828-B872

Mag: C651-B721

Magic:

Wind Manipulation

Chant – Gift me the power to control the wind around me, so I have the strength to survive another day.

%\&*#! ? - !*& #~/%!?\ !*& #~/%!?\ !*& #~/%!?\ !*& #~/%!?\

Skill:

Nightcrawler: Can hide in the dark undetected.

Self-activated

Total Resistance: Grants the person ultimate resistance against any mental, internal or external attacks.

%\&*#! ?: %\&*#! ?%\&*#! ?

The bits inbetween are just as fun adn juicy as the battles.

Nathan is now Level and I think he has earnt it considering he went from fighitng in Knossos straight into finding his Familia in the dungeon.

I gave him quite a bit of boost in his Falna as the last time I showed it was before the Xenos Arc and he's been through a bit since then. His last update before this one was just before he went into knossos and I based it on how Ais went up 250 with her training with Ottar. Since she is a level 6 and Nathan was a level 4, he's going to go up a quite a lot, even though it was only in a week so I think what I gave him is justified considering how much he ran, got hit and how much magic he used.

Also new magic, wonder what it does.

What do you think of his new development ability to, alongside Riveria getting more invested as well seems to work. Also, the royal elf family is going to be quite big, you think the only possibility she would come to is him being her niece. That's too big of a reveal to do like that.

Since I'm working on 2 stories now, I'm either going to bring out both stories at once within a month or try and do one chapter a fortnight. One for this and then one for 'The one left behind'.

As always, please leav a review of what you think and also what you think about the constant switching back and forth at the end of the chapter and whether you think Italics would have been better.

Reviews:

juantu1: Riveria is going to become more important to the plot now, especially since she has seen his eyes. Don't worry, I've teased enough of her now, and she isn't someone who just sits back and lets things come to her.

jank7457: I'll never drop this story, DW

uselessman: Thanks... I think. I don't know but I'm going to think you are being nice so cheers.

NinjaFang1331: Thanks my guy, appreciated.

ardianlura: Thank you, I will continue and I've got another story started now so go enjoy it.

As always, thanks for reading and sticking with me. I'll see ya in the next story, Peace!