Do you think I would make a good hero?
What he asked Skadi kept repeating in his mind over and over. His brain trying to guilt-trip him into thinking that the decision to go to the expedition was a mistake, that his arrival to Orario was bad luck. He should've stayed at his village and let it all be over.
Just what kind of hero would fall into a trap? Not a very good one, he considered that anyone on the surface might be looking for him but at the same time who would? Skadi? Noel? While he believed the two of them might worry for the missing captain, for anyone else this would be just another adventurer that perished in the Dungeon.
He could feel the weight of guilt coming back at him, hitting him harder and harder, with a voice that was screaming at him. It was the voice of Skadi, asking him why he wouldn't return home, or why he decided to throw his life away.
That voice was getting louder, insulting him, something he did not expect from Skadi. The guilt was hitting him even more now, more specifically in his leg.
Wait.
Skadi would not insult nor hit him, she was caring ever since he joined the Familia, like a mother wishing for their children to return. This was nothing like her.
"Oh Gods, please wake up! "
It was the voice of a girl, she sounded distressed and even more so when she kept kicking Ragnar's leg.
"You damned adventurer, wake up! "
"Huh? " The blond slowly opened his eyes and found the rocky floor beneath him. It was dark and the few sources of light came from some torches that were placed on some pillars of this makeshift camp inside of a cave. No, it was still the Dungeon.
His vision was blurry but could discern some form of tent opposite of him but what instantly caught his attention was the shoe that kept attacking him.
"What? "
"Oh… oh thank-…" The girl was breathing rapidly, almost hyperventilating. "You are alive, my prayers have been heard." She sounded relieved that the other prisoner was waking up
"What? Who… where?" The captain tried to move but his body wouldn't let him; even though his body was somewhat weak, he noticed that his wrists were tied together and his back was against one of these stone columns.
He turned his head to look at the one that was calling out to him. It was another adventurer, a young girl who also had her hands tied. Her brown hair was mixed in with dirt and even some bits of red were visible; amidst the dark he could see the leftovers of a wound near her forehead.
"Hey, can you hear me? Are you conscious? "
"Ugh…" Ragnar groaned as the throbbing pain from the headache came back "Where are we? "
"We're still in the Dungeon. You are part of the surviving miner group, right? "
"Y-yeah, we were ambushed-… no, we were set up. Two other adventurers killed the entire group and then knocked me out." He was struggling as he tried to remove the bindings that kept him tied to that pillar.
"Makes sense, our group heard something and sent me and a friend to investigate but…" The girl muttered in the end as she looked at something to her left. Ragnar leaned and saw that there was another pillar with another person held as prisoner, although their head was lowered and there was no movement whatsoever.
"Sorry to hear that. Do you have any idea why they didn't kill us? "
"I'm afraid not. Maybe they were slavers? Or maybe they plan to kill us later? All I know is that I woke up about not too long ago and didn't see those two return or anything. My friend… he was already gone and I thought the same about you but then I noticed you were breathing."
"So you started kicking me to wake me up? "
"What else was I supposed to do?!" The girl looked embarrassed "But we have to get out, I heard monsters not too far from here, if they find us…"
"Hey, listen to me. We will get out, alright? I just… need to think something." Being able to think straight again, Ragnar tried to find any possible solutions to this problem. First he tried breaking the ropes with his bare strength but it was completely pointless, then he tried cutting it with his fingernails but once again it yielded no result.
He looked around for other options, he turned his eyes to the camp and noticed quite a few things. There were many backpacks that had food rations, potions and bandages, even the big one that the supporter carried with her.
However, he could see that among the piles of stolen supplies there were an assortment of weapons, including his axe and shield.
"You thought of something? Please tell me you have a plan! "
"Unless I can move things around without touching them…" The captain looked up and noticed that his stone column was slightly thinner near the top, as if it eroded due to time. He slowly stood up and hoped that his plan actually worked.
"W-what are you doing? " The girl asked with some fright in her voice "Just don't die"
"I'm not intending to." Once his hands reached the thin area of the rock, he tried to pull with as much strength as he could muster. "Come… on…"
The rock was definitely sturdy but he would not stop. He used the same pillar as a counterweight so he could put even more strength into his pull; if there was one thing he was sure was that if this plan did indeed work he would hit the ground hard and it would definitely not be a pretty landing.
The first cracks could be heard, both Ragnar and the girl were surprised. Perhaps there was some hope.
He kept trying, feeling his muscles tense up the more cracks he heard in the stone. This was definitely it, he would be able to break free, help the girl and then escape the Dungeon to expose those that set them up. When the rock broke, the next thing that they could hear in the cave was pretty simple.
Thud
"Ow…" The impact was far more painful than he initially thought, while his body was sore it was his face that suffered the bigger deal. His goal was to fall to the side but he hit his nose.
The captain rubbed his face and noticed some red on his palms. His predictions were right, there was going to be a lot of pain and he was already feeling it. He clicked his tongue as he laid on the ground, looking at the darkened ceiling of that cave.
His breathing was ragged and his mind was racing with the many thoughts about escaping and trying to catch the culprits behind this. Perhaps revenge was on top of his head but first he would need to see the city again, the open clear skies whether there was a sun or a moon; he lost all notion of time in there, he felt tired and wanted to rest but there was something howling near the camp that kept him from going to sleep.
That and the anxious girl that was calling him out.
"Hey, get up! You can't relax now, there are monsters nearby! And you need to get me out of here! "
"Right…" He sat down and crawled to where all the supplies were. He immediately found his axe and used the sharp edge to quickly cut his bindings. Once he was free, he rubbed his wrist and sighed "Much better…"
"Hello? Can you please hurry? "
"Yeah, I heard you the first time." Ragnar groaned and grabbed the axe, went back to the pillars and started working on the bindings from the girl. "By the way, I'm Ragnar, Ragnar Strand of the Skadi Familia." He cut he last bit of rope and the brunette was free as well.
She moved away from the pillar and started to investigate the pile of supplies without saying anything else.
"That's it? Not even a thank you or even your name? " But he got no response, instead he went to the pile as well to grab his things.
Another howl got the attention of both adventurers that froze their blood. The monsters were soon going to draw near.
"We'll have those pleasantries for later. Can you fight? " The unnamed girl grabbed a spear. It was a black metallic shaft with wooden-colored grips near the far ends; the blade had three tips, all of them in a similar black metal with golden finishes and a green gem embedded near the center.
Having his axe prepared, he moved to grab his shield but saw something else in this pile. It was another axe, to be more precise it was Rati's weapon. It didn't look special but perhaps it had more of a sentimental value to its now deceased owner. Sadly her body was nowhere to be found in that area.
Yet another howl made him react again, the unnamed girl was almost done, she was now donning a leather chest plate that had a black cape with white lines attached to the back and side. Without second thoughts about it, the captain took Rati's axe and hung it from his belt.
"Let's go."
The two of them proceeded to leave the camp, having picked up their belongings they moved down the cave, still hearing the sound of monsters in the distance was distressing, even more so when they wouldn't know where they could come from.
"Hey, you got any idea where we might be? "
"Do I? " The cold response from the girl was met with a strange expression from Ragnar as they kept advancing. "Ugh, look at the walls and the ceiling." She pointed at both of them; the rocky walls had the same light green color while the ceiling was far away than it was before. "For all we know this could be the ninth floor. Not much of an issue."
"Ninth?!" The captain was surprised, if her assumptions were correct then this was the farthest he's ever reached in the Dungeon, but this also meant that he was in unknown territory. "Anything that we should expect here? "
"What do you mean? You've never been here? " But the worried expression on the blond gave it away "Oh dear… I…" She sighed "Alright, this place is not as difficult as the Guild makes it sound, been here in the past quite a few times to know this isn't too difficult. Whatever you saw in the past you can find it in this place, but worse."
It wasn't a lot of information but it was enough for him to understand that he should be more cautious than ever. Fighting against the giant ant proved to be somewhat difficult but knowing that there could be more and on top of that they were stronger?
"If you're not going to tell me your name can you at least tell me something about you? "
"Why do you want to know? Is it paramount that you do? "
"No, but I would appreciate if there is something that I need to know. We don't know if we will be fighting any monsters on our way out so it would be nice to have a strategy." Ragnar explained, looking back every now and then in case they were followed.
"If you need to know… I'm an adventurer, a level one and by your reactions I believe you are too." The girl continued "The only strategy is that if we see a monster we kill it quickly and keep going. The faster we get out of this place the quicker we'll figure out where we are."
It was a simple plan, and honestly there was nothing else Ragnar could think of. He wanted to get more information out of her but it was clear she was not budging. The captain sighed as they kept their march down the cave.
The howls became constant and the sound of fighting was getting near, however none of them dared yell for help. What if that would attract the monsters or even the people that kidnapped them? It was a risk, an unnecessary one at that too.
There was silence between them until they reached what looked to be the end of this cave. A huge wall with a broken ladder and at the top of this wall there was a passageway with some light coming out of it.
But that was not the only thing that they saw, at the bottom there were two bodies and it was not surprising that they recognized them.
"Wait, those are…" The girl slowly approached, she had the spear at the ready and quickly stabbed at the stomach of one of these individuals but there was no movement.
"They are dead…" Ragnar also approached and kneeled by them.
They were the same adventurers that kidnapped them who, unlike the last time, suffered some mortal wounds, namely a big cut on the neck, broken legs and many cuts in the chest. The floor was tinted red as the blood that came out of the wounds was already dry.
The sight of dead people was disgusting to him, his stomach was revolting but at the same time he felt relieved that the people who ambushed him and many more met a proper demise.
"What do you think happened? " The blond asked, looking at their surroundings.
"Wild guess, but some of those wounds definitely don't look like they were caused by a monster." She pointed with the spear at the other cuts in the abdomen of both kidnappers "Maybe someone else found them, they tried to hide but the ladder broke. It explains the legs."
Ragnar noticed that some of the cuts were not deep, made by a small weapon. He turned his head and saw the tip of the spear, aiming at one of the corpses. "Your work? "
"Just one." The girl walked over to the individual on the right and gave a stab in the rib. The cut fit perfectly. "I was able to wound him but clearly that didn't kill him."
Ragnar stood up and then looked at the light coming from the top of the wall. "How are we going to get there without the ladder? "
The girl pondered, she looked at Ragnar and an answer quickly came to her. "You'll have to help me get up."
He was going to complain but knew that it wouldn't lead anywhere, even more when he didn't have a plan of his own either.
But that escape plan had to wait sadly as they heard something coming from the same path they took. They readied their weapons and faced the sound.
It was a group of Kobolds that were approaching them. Unlike the ones he already faced in the past, these ones were slightly taller, their fur was closer to black rather than gray and they were armed with more sophisticated weapons rather than just pointy sticks or clubs. One of them had a part of a pickaxe while another one had a dagger.
There were a total of four Kobolds, not a big group but Ragnar felt slight terror since they should be stronger according to the girl.
The blond took a deep breath, he positioned himself to charge and attack but a black and white mist dashed quickly towards the group of Kobolds.
A yelp of pain came from one of the monsters as it disappeared. The black spear lodged in its skull.
The other creatures were terrified at the menacing eyes from this adventurer but nonetheless they went for the attack.
She kicked the Kobold with the dagger and hit the third one with the back of the spear, pushing it against the wall. The fourth one charged but was met with three spear hits in their abdomen before the tip of the weapon went through the head and made it disappear.
The creatures were afraid, the second one tried to attack only to be met with a spear through the chest and then raised from the group. The Kobold tried to release itself but the adventurer threw it around, making it fall near Ragnar and disappear, the Magic Stone was the only thing remaining.
The last remaining enemy was trying to escape but it wasn't for long. She aimed the spear threw it like a javelin.
An instant kill since the impact was the back of the head and the Kobold disappeared, the crystal severely fractured as a result.
Ragnar was speechless. The way she moved and eliminated all those monsters was swift and efficient. There was a clear difference between the two of them, whether it was experience, combat ability or both, it was still like day and night.
"You're a good fighter…" The captain muttered as the girl was walking towards her weapon; she put the shoe underneath the spear and then kicked it up just to grab it mid-air and made it twirl in between her fingers. "Quite the ability for a level one."
She immediately turned at the praise from Ragnar but her face still showed that neutral expression she had while fighting. "Been like that for a long time…"
"That's good to hear. Glad to know that your attitude is different from a while ago, at least you are not whi-…" But the captain's voice suddenly ended when the unnamed girl quickly aimed her spear at him. It happened in the blink of an eye to the point that he didn't react quick enough until he felt the cold bloodied tip of the weapon against his skin.
"Listen carefully because I will not repeat myself. I don't trust you, and I don't care if you don't trust me either. As far as you have to know, if I have to die I'll do it fighting and being tied to a pillar while a monster or whoever tries to kill me is terrifying. Once we are out of this place we are done and we'll continue our merry ways, is that clear? " Ragnar quickly nodded and she lowered the spear. "Now, put your hands together and boost me up."
The blond complied, put his weapon and shield away and then clasped his hands together; the girl put one foot on them and the other on his shoulder. "Ready? " An affirmative sound prepared the boy for the next part. "Alright, one, two thre-E! " He felt a massive weight on his shoulder as the adventurer used Ragnar as a platform to jump higher.
She was agile but he did not expect her to be even more than that. The jump was abnormally high for a human but it was enough to reach the top of this wall; she was standing in front of the passageway.
"Hey, " Ragnar rubbed his shoulders, "how do I get up there? Is there any rope or something? " But the girl looked back at him before she turned around "H-hey… where are you going?!" It was at that moment his realization hit. He was played all this time, the person he thought could be a temporary ally abandoned him. "HEY! " But there was no response.
His breathing started to get quicker. He tried to assemble the ladder again but it was far too broken to even support his weight.
But the bad news kept getting worse. Behind him he heard some footsteps and while he was hoping for some people to rescue him, the reality was far worse.
Three wolves joined the scene, walking over the dust from the Kobolds. Their fur was gray and contrasted with the red glowing eyes, a different variant of what he already experienced in the past.
He pull out the shield and axe and prepared himself for a fight. Without anyone that could help him fight or just any type of support, the adventurer would have to face these creatures all by alone and unfortunately there was no way to escape either, the only way out was through the wolves.
One wolf jumped, going straight for the neck but the adventurer blocked and went for the counterattack. His axe was able to lay a deep cut on the wolf but it made it no difference as it looked like the monster was untouched so his best option was to shove the animal away.
The second wolf also went for a bite although rather than attacking Ragnar, it held its fangs onto the edge of the shield, trying to remove it from Ragnar's arm.
The third wolf was successful. Its target was the captain's leg and it was able to bite down, causing him to yelp in pain.
"Damned mutt! " He yelled and kick that wolf away but in that process he was also lost his shield.
Now at the mercy of the three wolves, one of them slightly injured, the other one tossing the shield around and the last one with blood on their fangs.
Rather than succumbing to panic, Ragnar had a different approach. Probably not the most effective one but definitely one that might give him a chance, perhaps even a sliver of it.
He took the other axe that he carried, the one that belonged to Rati. With a pained smile he took a step away from the monsters only for them to approach slowly.
"When I get out of here, I'll find these people's Familia, I'll find that girl and I'll burn them down…" Those whispers were nothing but grim words, things that he never expected to say but were definitely fueled by some inner rage. The fear he had was slowly turning into fury. "COME ON! "
The wolves charged, going straight for his arm, thigh and neck. Their fangs were at the ready and a well-placed bite could tear off part of his flesh or outright kill him. But at that point? What other option he had? He couldn't run away and as much as he wanted to curse the one person that got out of that cave it would be pointless.
Ragnar swung both his axes together and was able to get a good cut on two of the wolves. His thigh and neck were safe but the arm was the one who suffered a hit at the last second; he started bashing the skull of the monster with his own axe and forced the creature to fall to the ground.
The other wolves moved slightly back at the counterattack but did not expect that the next move Ragnar would perform would be an all-out attack against the downed wolf.
He made sure to leave a good mark, he was not going to be the pray of these wolves, he was going to turn the tide around as he kept swinging each axe again and again. Blood was splattered, not only from his arm that was still wounded but from the wolf itself until there was nothing left but dust and the Magic Crystal that fell to the ground.
The furious Ragnar wiped the blood on the axe with a violent movement before he focused on the other wolves. He was ready to go on the offensive again but something stopped him.
Right behind the last two wolves there were a few more that appeared. Soon the pair of monsters was accompanied by six more.
Just when he thought that the situation could be in his favor, things turned for the worse. While he could sustain some more damage this was beyond what he believed could fight.
If he didn't think of a proper way out, it would be his end.
But they all saw something falling that landed right below the wolves. Ragnar heard a voice whispering but could not understand what it said; the only thing that he noticed were that the things that fell were small rocks that were craved with a strange symbol that was slowly getting a red-yellow glow.
"If I were you I would take a few steps back." It was the girl that climbed earlier, she returned.
The glow was becoming more noticeable and Ragnar jumped back to a safer distance, not like there was much to retreat to.
In just the blink of an eye there was a wall of flame that was summoned from the rocks that were thrown, catching all the wolves in its hell. He could feel the heat from his position and even if he believed he was at a safe distance he still feared one of those flames would get him.
The whimpers were painful to hear but one by one the wolves were being eliminated, leaving nothing behind but ashes.
"Here, climb up." The girl lowered a rope for the blond to leave that area.
"Yeah, just a moment." Ragnar moved to where the wolves used to be and looked for his shield, however, the only thing that remained was a charred piece of wood and hot metal that was no longer usable. So much for Skadi's gift.
Though he feared that coming back alive was better than having his shield in pristine condition.
Ragnar put his axes away and turned to the rope and started to climb up with the help of the girl who was pulling it. It was difficult with a wounded leg and arm but through a lot of effort the two of them were finally at the top of the passageway.
The captain tried to catch his breath, applying pressure on the wound in his arm. "I thought you left me to die."
"You looked like you can't handle yourself down there, you clearly need my help."
"Right…" A pained laugh came from the boy's throat as he pulled the backpack to the front and took out one of the potions. "So…" He emptied the first vial, already feeling the pain from the leg and arm slowly dissipating "Thanks for helping there, may I ask your name now?"
The girl stood up, wiping some of the dust of her clothes. "If you have the energy to make those questions then you have the energy to move. Let's go, I found a way out of this place."
Ragnar clicked his tongue, he needed a few moments to catch his breath before continuing. He looked at the leftovers of the battle from earlier. The wolves were nowhere to be seen, only ashes and the crystals.
If there was anything that he could learn out of that near-death experience was that his companion was far more terrifying than he initially thought and also that this new improvised combat style of using two axes left him quite vulnerable but at the same time it allowed him to be more on the offensive. His lips curled into a smile; that was something he would need to look more into once he was out of the Dungeon.
"You want to get out of this place or not? " The voice echoed from the other side of this passageway; the girl was impatient and with a good reason.
"Yeah, I'm going." The captain groaned and stood up. His wounds were mostly healed and there were some little bits of pain that still lingered.
Ragnar walked down this passageway, slightly smaller than the cave they were in but still allowed for some freedom of movement.
"Hey, if you don't mind me asking, what was that from before? "
"My magic."
"Figured as much, but what was it exactly? " The quick response from earlier was more than enough for her, the captain did not receive any kind of answer which only made him sigh. "Look, I don't know who you are and I don't think I'll get any answer to that but all I want to say is that I do trust you, otherwise you would've killed me already or left me behind." Once again, no response.
They continued until they reached what looked to be the end of the road, although rather than being unlucky, they found a wooden staircase that was definitely in better condition than the last one and at the top of it there was a trapdoor.
Before they decided to climb, the unnamed one stopped and turned. "Look, we…" She sighed "You want to become a great adventurer? A big hero? "
"Among other things…"
"Then let me give you this piece of advice." She did not look happy about it, almost careful too. "Being an adventurer is a difficult profession, many want to try their luck only to end up dead on their first day. But you must understand that not every adventurer is a good person or they want to become a hero; you will find rotten apples like the people who kidnapped us or even worse. Orario is not a city of saints, nor is a place for everyone."
Ragnar was ready to speak but she raised her hand to stop him. "I don't trust you but I can see that you do not mean any evil nor harm even though you fight like a savage." She pinched the bridge of her nose "What I'm trying to say is that you can just save yourself the pain of being an adventurer. Leave Orario, become a farmer or anything, I don't know. But don't throw your life away."
There was silence afterwards. Despite the quiet tones in the end this felt very serious for the captain who, with widened eyes, look at the other adventurer in surprise.
But now it was Ragnar's time to remain quiet. He walked past her and held onto the wooden ladder.
"I appreciate your concern, but I'm afraid I won't give up." He started climbing. "If I did, I'm sure my goddess would feel sad that I leave Fimbulvetr and I have some people who are looking up to me so I can't disappoint them."
"Even if you know that you might end up like many other adventurers? "
Ragnar stopped and turned his head at her with a smile "Don't worry, I will eventually find my way out of Orario, once I'm done with my promise."
"And that is…? " But now it was her who did not receive an answer as Ragnar continued climbing. The girl pouted and followed behind the captain.
The loud thuds from the trapdoor echoed in the cave before it was finally unlocked. When they got out they found themselves inside of a smaller cave that served to cover this hidden passage from unsuspecting eyes. They closed it and then left this somewhat hidden area only to recognize the area they ended up in.
The light blue walls and the sound of fighting informed them that they were still in the Dungeon but at least they left the floors from below, if anything these were more familiar grounds to the two of them, even more so for Ragnar.
"Wait… this is the path my group took." He walked closer to the center of this room and turned around "Yeah… Yeah I remember now and that way…" He pointed to his right where the cave kept going "That's where the exit should be."
"To think that this hidden entrance was here all along, maybe those kidnappers planned it all along, or maybe were in cahoots with the people who organized the expedition?"
"Ca-hoots? "
She sighed "Doesn't matter, let's get out of here." That was something he did not have any complaints about.
Ragnar and the girl walked out of that floor, noticing how they were going up at every turn they could. It was easy to see more adventurers as they were getting closer to the surface, but that begged an even bigger question to them right now. The day was almost over so why would many adventurers go down the Dungeon that late in the day? And that's when they started wondering how long they've been captured.
It was only when they reached the surface that they realized. They left Babel and found that the sun was slowly rising in the distance.
"We've been down there for a whole day? " Ragnar held his stomach "I guess it even more sense now."
The girl stretched her arms now that they were out. The feel of the sun hitting her face made her smile, a first for the captain ever since he saw her.
"I can't believe we are finally out. But this is far from over unfortunately."
"What do you mean? "
"We've been missing for a whole day, on top of that there were miners and adventurers who died. It's bound to bring an investigation from the Guild if not from many Familia." She turned to face the blond "What are you going to do now? "
"Get some breakfast… and probably sleep in my bed. Once I'm back in form I will come back here" He pointed with his thumb at the tower.
"Are you not going to consider what I said earlier? " But Ragnar shook his head "Fine, at least I warned you."
"And why do you suddenly care? You went from not trusting me to giving me this warning. What's your goal here? "
"Me? Nothing, but I'd hate to see people with good intentions dying to all that lurks beneath." She sighed and turned "It can't be helped! Stay safe at least."
"Yeah, don't worry, I will." He smiled and saw the girl taking a few steps away before she stopped again.
"By the way, the name's Anastasia. A level one adventurer from the Loki Familia."
Those meant big words. A member of the Loki Familia lost in the Dungeon and no one came looking for her? Perhaps they worked differently compared to a smaller Familia like his.
"Now, can I get a thank you from rescuing you the first time? " But Anastasia left, walking away from Babel. Ragnar groaned at her attitude but at least it was all over. The fresh winds hitting his face, the sun slowly hovering over the Labyrinth City.
For now, his plan would be to return to Fimbulvetr since he believed (or rather was quite certain) that being gone for a whole day would definitely make Skadi and Noel worry.
The captain took a step but felt something beneath his boot. There was a shiny item there and when he kneeled to grab it he noticed something peculiar about it.
It was a black circular brooch that had two birds next to each other but looking away; he remembered that Anastasia had one holding the cape on the front so it belonged to her. Even if he wanted to return it to the owner, she was already gone and nowhere to be seen. In his mind Orario was not that big of a city so sooner or later she would find her on his way to the Dungeon.
For now all he had to do was return to Fimbulvetr.
The trip was uneventful, some people glancing at him since he still had some blood from the previous encounters but none dared to ask about it.
Ragnar turned around the street and then entered Fimbulvetr. It was quiet, the doors to the mead hall were open and so he walked inside.
The captain knocked on the door to announce his arrival "Skadi? Noel?" As he approached the table he saw the goddess, resting her head over her arms, there was some food in front of her but it was definitely untouched.
He approached once again and gently shook the deity's shoulder "Goddess, wake up."
"Mh, Noel? Are you back? " She yawned and wiped her eyes clean. Once her vision adjusted to the light in the mead hall she noticed the golden hair and the worried expression from Ragnar who soon turned into a smile.
"Good morning, goddess. I'm ba-" But the first reaction from Skadi was to quickly stand and hug the adventurer. "S-Skadi?!"
"I… I was so worried." She was sobbing "When they said that your group was gone I… didn't want to believe… but your body never turned up so I hoped that you were just lost… that…" The captain returned the hug and only made the goddess cry even more. "Noel wanted to go down there to find you but… I just didn't want to lose him either… I didn't want to lose any more of you…"
"It's fine Skadi. I'm finally back." He helped the deity sit down "Speaking of, where's Noel? "
"He…" She wiped her tears "He took a lot of convincing but he went to Heimdall's for help, I doubt him or Thom would say no." She laughed "B-but what happened? A whole day gone with no news I…" She took a long and slow breath.
"Turns out two people in my group killed everyone else but decided to kidnap me."
"T-they must be part of a Familia, right? Who were they with? "
"I'm afraid I don't know. When we escaped we found their bodies and I didn't want to stay much longer to investigate."
"Wait, we? "
"Ah, yes. Another girl was still alive and we helped each other to escape. She… well, it's hard to describe her but she belongs to the Loki Familia."
"It would certainly escalate if Loki was involved in this as well." She muttered "But I suppose that in the end it all worked out for the two of you." Skadi smiled, finishing wiping the tears. "Y-you must be hungry, right? I can cook you something Ragnar."
"No, it's fine. I'm just going to sle-" But his stomach said otherwise as a loud growl came from below the table. Ragnar was filled with embarrassment as his body betrayed him.
"Don't worry, I'll get something out quick. You just relax and… don't go…"
"I won't. Not today at least." He chuckled.
Skadi smiled back at him, patting his head but noticed that he brought with him another axe but there were no signs of the shield "Where did your shield go?"
"Oh, that's part of the story, I can tell you more later."
"Sure… thank you Ragnar… for coming back, I mean." The goddess grabbed the plate of cold dinner and then turned towards the kitchen.
With Skadi gone, the captain took of his jacket and threw it to the side of the table, then he unclasped his armor and threw it to the side. He stretched his arms and let his head rest on the cold table. His breathing has calmed ever since but his body still felt heavy.
Thinking back on everything that happened, Ragnar pulled from the pocket of his pants the brooch that Anastasia lost; the two black birds looking away had crimson eyes and pointy beaks. His mind was tired already but at least he returned home.
Once things have calmed again he would return the brooch to its rightful owner and then get the `thank you´ he was waiting for.
The daring escape and the realization of using two weapons is cooler than one + shield! But now being serious: Ragnar was able to escape and meet another named character, sadly last time that happened... well, we will see how this develops.
For now Ragnar is back with Skadi.
Thanks everyone who's been supporting the story so far with follows, favs and the reviews! Each time I see something new in my email just makes me happier.
There is not much to say but to thank everyone again, I'll need to go back to the drawing board since this arc has just started!
Have a great week and as always, see you in the next chapter!
