A/N: I am so sorry for missing last week! Real life events caused major difficulties that I'd rather not discuss and I wasn't able to do much writing. This is only a new hobby, so it had to take a back seat. Thankfully, I was able to do a lot of writing this week and this is actually the longest chapter so far. Not by a ton but, longer.

I want to remind everyone that this is a story with two main characters. Torrhen and Bell will each occasionally take a back seat so that I can focus on the other one or other characters, like Welf or the members of the Loki Familia. I saw a comment about some events being too close to canon. Honestly, they weren't wrong and I don't really like it, but I wanted to keep kind of close to canon in the beginning so that I could get into this while still being mostly comfortable with what I am writing. I am still very new at this.

That being said, there are a few major canon events that will happen but they are going to be happening differently. I am keeping them because, in my opinion, they are extremely important events for the Hestia Familia or Orario as a whole. I really hope what I have planned will be different enough from canon and that they will be entertaining.

The canon events I will be having happen, and messing with, are the Pass parade (which, if you read to the end of this chapter, you can see might happen quite a bit differently), the 18th floor, Haruhime, I might show some the Kali stuff, and the Apollo war.

Thank you all for the comments and reviews. I really appreciate it. Please leave a note if you have any questions or something you'd like to say.

Hearthfire

Chapter 16

Torrhen

Torrhen smiled as he entered the Hostess with his Familia. With Bell ranking up and Welf joining the Familia, a celebration was in order so the group had decided to go out for a party. Torrhen hadn't been back to the Hostess since the incident with the drunken Bete of the Loki Familia, but Bell and Lili had both been there a few times since Bell was friends with one of the waitresses, Syr, and liked to keep in touch. Speaking of Syr, she came to greet them as the group walked through the door.

"Welcome!" She said, smiling.

"Hi Syr!" Bell grinned at her.

"I saw the notice board!" Syr exclaimed. "Are you here to celebrate?"

"We are indeed," Torrhen replied. "We're celebrating Bell's rank-up as well as a new member joining our Familia." He gestured at Welf, who waved and introduced himself.

Syr led them through the tavern to a fairly large table on the left wall before disappearing into the back. It wasn't long before she came back out, followed by a blonde elf that Torrhen had never met before.

"Do you mind if we join you to celebrate?" Syr asked. "I asked Mama Mia, and she said it was alright so long as you eat and drink a lot."

"I don't think that'll be a problem" Hestia smiled. "Please, join us. Although, I think a few introductions are in order."

"Oh!" Bell said up straight. "Right Syr, this is Goddess Hestia, our patron and Mr. Welf, the new member of our Familia. You've already met Lili and my teacher, Mr. Torrhen. Goddess, Mr. Welf this is Syr, a waitress who works here."

"It's nice to meet you!" Syr said. "This is my friend, Ryuu," she gestured to the elf girl, "She's heard me talk about you a few times, so I asked her to join us."

"It's nice to meet you, Ms. Ryuu" Bell smiled. "Please, join us."

"Thank you," Ryuu said as she and Syr sat down. Torrhen observed the elf girl as she exchanged pleasantries with the members of his Familia and another member of the staff brought over drinks. She was not like the average waitress you'd see in a tavern. Even one like this. From the way she moved and the way her eyes tracked the people in the room, he was certain that she was an ex-adventurer, although why she had retired wasn't clear. She didn't seem to have any debilitating injuries or scars and she looked pretty young, so it likely wasn't because of age or an incident like what happened to Naaza.

"Are you a former adventurer, Ms. Ryuu?" Torrhen asked. He knew the answer, of course, but it was polite to ask.

"Just Ryuu is fine, Mr. Torrhen" she said. "To answer your question though, yes, I am a retired adventurer. From what Syr tells me, you're also retired?"

Torrhen nodded. "Semi. I spend my days teaching and helping my Familia, although I may still come out of retirement eventually."

"You must be quite the teacher, given Mr. Cranel's rapid improvement. His record-breaking rank-up is most impressive."

"I have had more than my fair share of teaching experience, but it's Bell's own drive and potential that are the real cause of his growth. He's one of the most driven students I've ever had the privilege to teach, and I have been genuinely impressed by how dedicated Bell is to his training." Out of the corner of his eye, Torrhen could see Bell turning red in embarrassment.

"Having a good drive is important for improving but being cautious is important for staying alive long enough to improve. From what Syr told me, Mr. Cranel's adventure was quite reckless."

"It was." Torrhen glared at Bell now, who had the sense to look abashed. He'd already given the boy quite the lecture about his stupidity. It seemed that the story of what had happened with Bell and the Minotaur had spread through the gossip vine, but thankfully there had been no word of Torrhen's confrontation with Ottar.

"Despite his most recent bout of stupidity, Bell has been impressively cautious inside the Dungeon. As has Lili." Torrhen nodded to the girl, who smiled.

"Good," Ryuu said, addressing the two of them. "The Dungeon is ruthless and unforgiving. It will swallow you up if you aren't careful."

Torrhen nodded at her words. Although the Dungeon was different from anything he'd encountered in Tamriel, in principle it was not dissimilar to delving into Dwemer ruins, Nordic tombs, or Falmer caves. It was just a whole lot bigger with a few weird rules that made sense once you'd spent some time inside.

From the way Ryuu was speaking, Torrhen was certain that something bad had happened to her inside the Dungeon. Since had only just met her though, he would not pry into her past unless she proved to be untrustworthy. He did not feel like she would be a problem though. Not like Lili had when he'd first observed her. Just looking at her face as she spoke, Torrhen was reminded of a few members of the Dawnguard after their victory at Castle Volkihar. Something bad had happened in her past, likely the death of someone she cared about, and she was angry. After their victory, many of the Dawnguard had looked lost, trying to find a way to live in a world where they had taken their vengeance. Many of them had looked like this girl. Still angry at an enemy they could no longer see or were at least much harder to find, and just trying to live with it. Torrhen was unsure if his estimation was correct but would not pry unless it became a problem for his Familia.

"Don't worry, Ms. Ryuu, I'll be careful from now on." Bell said, still abashed. "We won't be going into the Dungeon for a few days anyway, so that we can train with Welf."

"Indeed." Torrhen nodded. "Your next goal is the middle floors, and I need to make sure you can work together properly before I let you go down that far. No matter how good your teamwork is, I'm likely to accompany you for your first descent to the 11th floor."

"I need to make you new armor before we head down anyway," Welf added. "What's left of your last set is little more than scrap at this point." Bell smiled at them both and nodded as he took a sip from his flagon.

"I wonder how Finn and the Loki Familia are doing," Torrhen wondered to himself. He'd been quite disappointed at not being able to continue on with them after the Minotaur incident, but he'd wanted to be on the surface to help make sure there would be no problems stemming from the incident or his having taught Ottar a 'lesson.'

Finn

"Outta the way Bete, I don't wanna cut you up!" Tiona yell carried up to him as she dashed towards one of the Flame Rocks the group was fighting, her massive double-bladed sword, Urga, spinning wildly.

"As if that oversized toothpick could even lay a scratch on me!" Bete yelled as he jumped over her head, crushing one of the monsters with his heel as he came back down.

The Loki Familia was on the 44th floor of the Dungeon and making excellent time. After their encounter with the minotaur and the injured members of the Hestia Familia, Torrhen had, understandably, left the group to look after his charges. Finn and his group had then continued on to the 18th floor.

The younger members of the advance team, Ais, Tiona, and Tione especially, had been rather inspired both by Torrhen's swift defeat of Ottar, which had been so fast that they hadn't even been able to see any of it despite moving as quickly as they could. Only Ais had seen even part of it. On top of that, seeing young Bell Cranel face off against the Minotaur and win had only doubled their excitement. It seemed the two members of the Hestia Familia had lit a fire in several of the younger members of Finn's Familia.

The encounter had even lit a fire under Bete, though he would never admit it. After they had regrouped with the rest of the expedition team, Tione and Tiona had thoroughly enjoyed relaying what had happened although Finn had made them swear not to mention anything about Ottar's defeat. If word got out that someone had defeated Ottar that quickly, it would cause chaos and there was no telling what Freya would do if that happened. Thankfully, everyone had understood and was keeping their mouths shut about Ottar's involvement. Finn was certain there would be rumors, but that was better than a confirmed story getting out.

The story of young Bell fighting the Minotaur, however? That was not something that needed to be kept secret, and the girls had been spreading the tale all across the expedition team. Tiona, it appeared, was especially inspired by it. The young amazon girl must have retold the story a dozen times by now, to various different members of the expedition.

After regrouping on the 18th floor, the expedition had really begun. Finn had divided the Level 3 and 4 members into separate combat parties with each having an executive nearby to assist if things got hairy. As they descended, the executives were taking more and more of the combat duty since the strength of the monsters was too much for the weaker members.

On normal expeditions, after reaching the safety point on the 39th floor, the Level 3 and 4 members of the Familia would take on a fully supportive role. They would handle weaker monsters or strays that got past the executive team, who would take the lead once they'd left the safety point.

Thanks to the new skill boost potions though, the Level 4 members had been able to mostly keep pace with the Level 5 executives on the journey between the 39th and 44th floors. Not only had the potions been a blessing, both allowing the weaker members to keep up and taking care of every injury they'd suffered, but the magic bags had proven just as invaluable as Finn had expected.

Normally, the expedition team would be forced to leave any larger monster drops or stones behind and hopefully pick them up on the way back. Not this time though. One of the bags was being used to store the potions and some supporter equipment. What was left of the space in that bag, as well as the entirety of the other bag and the one Tsubaki carried were being used to store crystals and monster drops.

At last count, taken on the 39th floor, they'd already gotten enough stones and drops to mostly recover the expenses they'd been forced to pay when preparing for this expedition. Finn was confident that just in the last few floors, they had already recovered the small amount left over and were now making a profit with each stone and monster drop they picked up.

"They're certainly a lively bunch today," Gareth said from where he stood to Finn's right.

"It would seem they are still inspired by what they saw on the 11th floor." Rivera commented from his left.

The three of them were standing on a ridge overlooking the volcanic valley of the 44th floor. Below them, the various combat teams of the Loki Familia were battling against a large grouping of Flame Rocks and other smaller monsters.

"I wish I could have been there to see both fights," Gareth grumbled. "You sure you didn't see any of Torrhen's fight with Ottar?"

Finn shook his head. "Sadly, I did not. It doesn't surprise me that Torrhen won, but I would never have expected him to win so quickly."

"Makes you wonder if he's really Level 8 like you thought." Gareth added. "For all we know he could be Level 9 or 10."

"I could believe 9," Rivera said "but not 10. Level 9 is the highest anyone has ever been recorded as having reached. Supposedly being Level 10 would make one practically a demigod, and should be next to impossible to achieve."

"Torrhen seems to love doing unexpected things though," Finn cut in. "I would not be surprised if he really is Level 10 at this point."

"Anakitty's group appears to be having some trouble," Riveria suddenly said. Sure enough, down below them Finn could see the girls' team being pushed back. "They could use a hand." Riveria continued. "Should we signal one of the others?"

"Nah," Gareth said, hefting his axe. "I'll go. I need to hit something."

Finn just shook his head in exasperation as Gareth jumped down the cliff. It would seem he was inspired too, and he hadn't even seen what happened.

Torrhen

Torrhen grinned as he watched Bell work in the training yard. He was adapting nicely to the power of his new Level and they had finally figured out the trigger for his new ability. Welf was currently breaking in his new forge to make Bell's armor, so Torrhen had brought the boy out to work on triggering his Argonaut skill.

The skill required a charge time and it had taken them most of the morning to figure out how to trigger it and how long it took to charge. Once they had figured it out, it was just a simple matter of practice to make sure Bell could do it whenever he needed to. The skill could prove invaluable for Bell, so Torrhen wanted to make sure he could use it on command rather than relying on luck.

They'd been at it for most of the day, and the sound of hammering coming from the forge had stopped about an hour ago, so Torrhen wasn't surprised to see Welf coming out and waving at them.

"It's finished!" He called as they walked towards him, "I just need Bell to try it on."

"My new armor is really done?" Bell asked, bouncing with excitement.

"Yup," Welf grinned as he led them into his forge. "Since you liked your last set so much, I decided to make your new armor the next in that series. I call it the 'Pyonkichi Mk-III!'" Welf gestured to the armor he had placed on a stand. It wasn't all that visually different from Bell's last set, but even at just a glance Torrhen could tell it was of better quality. He examined it with a critical eye as Bell fawned over the set, beginning to pull it off the stand so that he could try it on.

Although the design and coloring were pretty similar, Welf had incorporated some of Torrhen's suggestions for improving the protective capabilities of the armor. The chest plate was slightly larger, and was attached to a blackened leather tunic that would go over Bell's bodysuit. The hardened leather extended below the metal chest plate to cover Bell's stomach, allowing the armor to better protect his torso without sacrificing flexibility.

The bracers now wrapped fully around Bell's forearm instead of just covering the top, and Welf had fashioned a set of rerebraces that covered his upper arms, with a gap below the pauldrons on his shoulders to allow for full mobility. In addition to these, Welf had added a set of greaves that could attach to Bell's boots, resting below the knee guards. The last change was a set of armored holsters on the upper legs that would both offer protection and serve to hold Bell's daggers.

Speaking of daggers, Bell's new one was sitting on the table next to the armor stand. In addition to making his new armor, Welf had expressed interest in forging a second dagger for Bell. After the fight with the Minotaur, all that had survived of Bell's equipment was the Hestia Knife that Torrhen had forged to be unbreakable. Since Bell liked to use two daggers at the same time, Torrhen had no problem with Welf making the second blade. It wouldn't be anywhere near as good as the Hestia Knife, but Bell didn't need two growth weapons at the same time.

With Torrhen having given his consent, Bell had happily handed over the Minotaur horn that he'd gotten as spoils after the fight and Welf had used it to fashion a brand-new dagger for the boy. Forged using a similar design to the Hestia Knife, the vibrant red blade was slightly longer with a narrower tip and slenderer handle. The handle and back of the blade were a deep red while the cutting edge was almost orange.

"What do you think?" Welf asked as Bell strapped the last of the greaves to his shins.

"I love it!" He replied, beaming.

"It doesn't feel too heavy?"

Bell started to twist and turn, getting a feel for the armor. "I don't think so. It doesn't really fell any heavier than the last set."

"That's because you leveled up," Torrhen cut in. "Ranking up increases your strength, which allows you to wear the heaver armor and not really feel the difference. If you were wearing your last set, it would probably feel like you weren't wearing armor at all."

"Really?" Bell grinned. "I can't wait to test this out. Can we go back out to the yard and do some sparring?"

"Hold up," Welf said," I have one more thing for you." He picked up the dagger that Torrhen had been examining. "This is the new dagger I promised you, forged using the horn of the Minotaur you beat."

"This is so cool!" Bell said as he took the dagger, holding it up to the light to examine it.

"I call it, Ushiwakamaru" Welf grinned.

"Come on," Torrhen said, moving towards the door. "We should give your new gear a good test in the yard before you use any of it in the Dungeon."

Bell

Bell easily caught the swipe of the Imp's claws on his bracer, using his other hand to plunge the Hestia Knife into its skull. His new armor held up beautifully, not even showing a scratch where the monsters attack had landed.

"Hah!" Mr. Welf cried out to Bell's right as his greatsword cleaved thorough another Imp. "I still can't believe we made it down to Level 11 so quickly!" He grinned, leaning on his sword as Lili took out the last of the pack with her crossbow.

"Lili and I have spent most of our time together running the first 10 floors, so we know how to move through them pretty quickly," Bell said.

"It doesn't hurt that Master Torrhen is with us," Lili added.

"I'm only here to observe, Lili" Mr. Torrhen said from the rock he was sitting on. What he'd said was true. Although he had accompanied them into the Dungeon, Mr. Torrhen hadn't actually fought anything yet. He hadn't had to. Bell and his team had been able to handle everything that the Dungeon had thrown at them so far, including a few Hard Armored and a Silverback not long after they'd arrived on the 11th floor.

"You're doing very well so far," Mr. Torrhen continued. "I thought you might have some trouble working together in the Dungeon but it looks like the training we did has paid off." He was right. Mr. Torrhen had refused to let them go into the Dungeon until they'd gotten used to working as a three-person team and had led them through several exercises to help them learn to work together best.

"I gotta admit, it's nice to have a team to work with," Mr. Welf said. "I've been diving into the Dungeon on my own pretty much since I started."

"You didn't work with any of the other members of the Hephaestus Familia?" Bell asked. He knew that Welf didn't really get along with the other members of his old Familia but not why.

"Nah," Mr. Welf looked sheepish. "We don't exactly get along."

"Why not?" Lili asked. Bell wasn't sure, but he got the feeling that she already knew the answer.

"They think I'm an idiot for not using my family gifts." Mr. Welf said.

"The Crozzo family were well known for making magic swords, right?" Bell asked. He'd come across them during his reading. Mr. Torrhen wanted him to be familiar with the cultures and histories of the nations around Orario.

"Yeah…" Mr. Welf looked down. "I'm the first in centuries to be able to make a true Crozzo magic sword. The problem is, I despise magic swords. No matter what you do, they always break. A weapon should never break in its owners' hands. Not only that, but Rakia used the magic swords my family made to do truly horrific things in the old Elven forests centuries ago. To this day, most elves refuse to even touch a magic weapon even if it wasn't made by a Crozzo."

Bell had come across that in his reading too. What the kingdom of Rakia had done to the elven villages during those wars was truly horrific. Bell couldn't really blame them for not wanting anything to do with the Crozzo magic swords. Mr. Torrhen hadn't been surprised by it either. He said that no matter what world you were in, Elves were very good at holding a grudge, especially if it was justified.

"That's why I'm excited to work with Torrhen," Mr. Welf continued, nodding to Mr. Torrhen. "He can help me learn to make magic weapons that won't break. With his help, maybe I can be known for being a true blacksmith, not just for making unreliable magic weapons"

"Speaking of which," Mr. Torrhen commented. "We can begin your lessons in enchanting tomorrow, after you get back from the Dungeon." Mr. Welf grinned.

The group continued on through the Dungeon, facing off against more packs of Imps, Orcs, and Hard Armored. The 11th floor was different from the long corridors that made up the first 10 floors. The different rooms were far larger and the hallways between them far shorter. A thin mist covered the entire area, making it difficult to spot potential ambushes.

It was perhaps two hours later, shortly after decimating a pack of Orcs, that their attempt at a break was interrupted by a loud rumbling and the ground shifting beneath their feet. With a loud 'Crack' the ground split open and a huge Infant Dragon burst out.

"Shit!" Mr. Welf yelled, drawing his sword.

"Distract it!" Bell shouted, sheathing his daggers and dashing backwards.

"Aim for its eyes!" Mr. Welf called to Lili.

"Got it!" She replied, jumping up onto a rock and loosing a bolt towards the Infant Dragon. She missed, the bolt carving a bloody trench just above it's right eye. The Infant Dragon roared in pain and charged. Mr. Welf rushed forward to halt its advance.

Bell stood behind the others, a Firebolt charged in his hands. Slowly, white sparkles began to appear around the charged spell. Bell's hand began to glow softly. A soft ringing noise sounded in his ears as the glow began to get brighter. This was the Argonaut skill. Bell's 'Hero Shot.' After their testing, Mr. Torrhen had concluded that using a fully charged Argonaut would cause the Firebolt spell to grow in power until it was equal to an Expert Destruction spell. Supposedly it could get even stronger as Bell's skill with Argonaut grew.

With his friends buying him time, Bell's skill was soon fully charged. With a mighty yell, he unleashed the supercharged spell towards the Infant Dragon. The overpowered Firebolt struck the monster in the face, a massive explosion rocking the area. When the smoke cleared, Bell was able to see that his spell had completely destroyed the dragon monsters' head, leaving only a bloody neck stump behind. The body soon burst into dust, the Infant Dragon's large magic stone crashing to the ground.

"Maybe we should call it a day," Mr. Welf said, panting and leaning on his sword.

"Agreed," Bell nodded. He was exhausted.

Welf

"The process for enchanting is fairly simple to explain," Torrhen said as he gestured to the enchanting tables. Welf was sitting on a stool in the enchanting labs, eagerly receiving his first lesson in what Torrhen called 'Tamrielic Enchanting.' "The Arcane Enchanter has six symbols, one in the center and five around it in a ring. The five outer symbols represent the five schools of magic, and are crucial in determining what kind of magic can be imbued into an object."

Torrhen was standing at one of the tables, gesturing as he spoke. "The object you wish to enchant is placed onto the center symbol. Once that is done and you have determined what kind of enchantment you wish to give it, a soul gem or magic stone is placed on the symbol corresponding to the school of magic the enchantment belongs to. If this is done correctly, the table will activate."

He pointed to the six candles at the top of the Arcane Enchatner. "If the table is active, these candles will light themselves. You must then place your hands on either side of the table, and gaze into the orb." He pointed to the swirling green orb that rested over a strange three-eyed skull at the head of the table. "This is where things start to get complicated. If you know how to weave an enchantment, then gazing into the orb will allow you to graft the enchantment onto an object."

"How do I learn to weave the enchantments?" Welf asked. He was following along so far, taking notes in a journal so that he wouldn't forget. This was probably the most important lesson he'd ever had and he didn't want to miss a single thing.

"It is possible to figure out enchantments using trial and error," Torrhen said. "A failed enchantment won't damage the object, but it will waste a soul gem. The easiest method for learning how to weave an enchantment, is to disenchant an object."

"Disenchant? You mean strip it of magic?" Welf didn't know that was even possible.

"Yes. Unfortunately, it requires a real mastery of enchanting to disenchant objects without destroying them in the process. You are not likely to do so for quite some time."

"So, it's possible to drain an enchantment through use and leave the object intact, but stripping the enchantment usually breaks the object?"

"Until one has achieved an extreme level of proficiency, yes. Gazing into the orb while disenchanting will allow you to see the structure of the enchantment, and remember it for later use. It is similar to figuring out the blueprints for a house by tearing it down."

"I suppose that makes sense." Welf nodded. He was fascinated by everything he was learning, but he was even more eager to begin. "So, how do I start?"

"With this," Torrhen said, pulling out a simple iron dagger. It was extremely well made, but simple. "I made and enchanted this with you in mind. It uses no special materials or items. It is just an iron dagger with a low Fire enchantment. It made this specifically for you to disenchant it."

Welf took the dagger in his hands, feeling the magic within. It wasn't very strong, but he could feel the enchantment within the metal. "How do you determine the strength of the enchantment?" He asked as he examined the dagger.

"The strength of the enchantment is determined by your skill as an enchanter and the strength of the soul gem used to fuel it."

"Soul gems don't exist in this world though, right?" Torrhen had told Welf of his origin shortly after he'd joined the Hestia Familia. It was quite astonishing, but it did explain how he knew this new method of enchanting objects.

"Correct. However, this world does have something that seems to work as a substitute," Torrhen opened a bag that was set on a workbench nearby and pulled out a magic stone. "The magic stones dropped by monsters in the Dungeon seem to work well in place of soul gems. Ones from monsters on the upper floors are roughly equal to Petty Soul Gems, the weakest quality of soul gem. That dagger was enchanted using the stone of a goblin."

Welf eyed the stones, critically. "So, how do I disenchant?" He asked.

"Place the dagger on the center symbol and set a gem into the top eye socket of the skull," Torrhen said with Welf following his orders. After he set the magic stone in place, the other two eyes on the skull began to glow an eerie purple. "The gem will not be consumed when disenchanting. It is simply used as a method of activating the tables disenchantment functions. Place your hands on either side and watch the orb." Welf did so and gazed into the swirling energy within the orb. Slowly he began to see shapes within the energy. He could see the dagger, but it was different. It was translucent and there was a strange, almost crystalline structure to it. He could see lines of energy moving through the structure. "Do you see the structure?" Torrhen asked.

"Yes," Welf replied, faintly.

"Good. Now pull it apart and watch closely." Welf obeyed, his own mind somehow allowing him to manipulate the energy within the orb. Slowly, he pulled the crystalline structure apart, watching carefully as he examined how it had been put together. The strands of energy he pulled from the structure hung in empty space for a moment before disappearing. He continued to pull until he had separated the last strands of the crystal structure. A strange tinkling noise distracted him and the eyes of the skull suddenly stopped glowing. Looking down, Welf saw the dagger disintegrating before his eyes.

"Very good." Torrhen said. You've disenchanted your first object. Now it's time to enchant your first." He handed Welf another iron dagger and a small magic stone. "Fire enchantments are part of the Destruction school, so place it on the symbol of Destruction. The one that looks like a hand."

Welf did so, setting the dagger on the center symbol and the stone on the glowing hand symbol. He placed his own hands back on either side of the table and gazed into the orb once more as the candles sprung to life. As the energy swirled, he could see the dagger and the stone appear. Within the stone were strands of crystalline energy similar to the ones he had pulled off of the other dagger. Taking the strands from the stone, he carefully began to layer them on the new dagger in the same way they had been on the one he had destroyed.

It was not an easy task, but eventually the last strand was snapped into place. The first set of candles went out and a soft whooshing noise filled the air. The second set went out and the stone disappeared into a shower of glowing sparks which flowed into the dagger. As the last of the sparks entered the dagger, the last set of candles went out. After a moment, the dagger glowed with a soft red light. When the light died, Welf slowly picked up the dagger.

"And now for the moment of truth," Torrhen said, pointing to a piece of scrap wood that was sitting on a workbench. Welf took the dagger and slowly carved part of the wood away. Smoke rose from the wood which began to blacken and burn. Part of it caught flame but died out quickly. "Congratulations Welf," Torrhen said. "You're an enchanter now."

Welf smiled at his mentor and looked down at the dagger. He'd done it! A new enchantment. He could already tell that this one wouldn't break after a few uses. This one was like the sword Hephaestus had shown him. A proper, rechargeable, enchantment.

Welf looked to his mentor. "What now?" He asked, eager to continue.

Lefiya

Lefiya panted as she ran behind the others down a corridor on the 53rd floor. It hadn't been more than a few hours since they'd descended from the safe zone 3 floors above them.

Flashback:

"I can't believe how much loot we've already collected!" Ms. Tsubaki said with a grin. Lefiya was sat inside the command tent with the other members of the team that would be descending to the 51st floor the next day. The group was comprised of Finn, Riveria, Gareth, Ais, Tione, Tiona, Bete, Tsubaki, Raul, and Lefiya herself. She and Raul would be serving as supporters.

"I have to admit to being surprised myself," Captain Finn replied. "Having the magic bags has allowed us to collect every single drop item and magic stone that has fallen between here and the surface. Normally we have to leave a good third of it behind. Sometimes more. We stand to make a tidy profit off this expedition once we return to the surface."

"We do indeed! These packs have been a blessing, not to mention those new potions!" Ms. Tsubaki grinned. "We had a few pretty major injuries getting here, but just one of those higher healing potions had the victim up and fighting in a few minutes."

"The skill potions also helped keep our weaker members in the fight longer," Gareth added. "It's really helped our efficiency."

"It has," Captain Finn cut in. "And there are others that should help us even more as we continue down." He gestured to a collection of white weapons on the ground. "Thanks to the indestructible weapons Tsubaki has made for us, we won't have to worry about losing our weapons if we run into any of those monsters with the acid blood that forced us to turn back last time. Just in case though, and in anticipation of what may lie ahead, Riveria and I have prepared potion sets for everyone to carry on their persons. There are several skill boosts, fire, frost, and poison resist, as well as several stamina and healing potions. The magic casters have several magicka potions in their sets as well."

"The fire resist potions will be essential once we hit the 53rd floor," Ms. Riveria said.

"Why?" Ms. Tsubaki asked, quizzically.

Flashback End:

Lefiya let out a squeal as she dodged a massive fireball that had erupted from the floor to her left. After the team had reached the 53rd floor they had been bombarded by fireballs coming from below them. If one looked down into the crater caused by the blast, they would see a shaft going down to the 58th floor, which was covered in Valgang Dragons who could sense adventurers as high up as the 53rd floor and would try to hit them from below with blasts of fire.

"Careful Lefiya!" Ms. Tiona called as she jumped over one of the shafts.

"Are you alright?" Raul asked as he ran alongside her.

"I'm fine," she began to say, but cut herself off when she noticed movement above them. "Raul, look out!" She pulled the human away by his backpack but was not quick enough to dodge the webbing shot out by the Deformis Spider that was perched on the ceiling.

"Lefiya!" The others cried out as she was pulled, screaming, towards the spider. Thankfully, the spider was killed before she could reach it. Unfortunately, it was killed by another blast from the Valgang Dragons and Lefiya plummeted into the shaft, freefalling towards the 58th floor.

Lefiya could hear the shouts of the others from above her as she righted herself. Gazing down the shaft, she could see the shapes of the dragon monsters and several others becoming clearer as she fell. One of the Valgang Dragons opened its maw and unleashed a blast of fire towards her. Lefiya raised both her hands and summoned her Lesser Ward shield.

The blast of flame slammed into the ward which held for a brief second, taking the brunt of the blast, before shattering and sending Lefiya spinning. What was left could have been extremely painful. Thankfully the fire resist potion that she had drunk just before entering the 53rd floor as well as a protection spell that Ms. Riveria had cast were enough to protect her from the rest of the damage.

"Are you alright, Lefiya?" She heard from beside her as she righted herself, once more looking down at the monsters below as she fell. Looking to her right, she saw Ms. Tiona and Ms. Tione had jumped into the shaft and were now freefalling alongside her.

"I'm fine!" She called out. "Try to stay above me! My shield spell can block the worst of the fireballs!"

Sure enough, another ball was soon launched. Lefiya brought up the Lesser Ward spell once again, casting it with both hands. Again, the spell held briefly before shattering. Again, the power of Ms. Riveria's spell and the fire resist potions negated what was left of the flames.

"Those potions really help!" Ms. Tione called out. "And that shield of yours is really good! Once we reach the bottom, we need to work together to fight the monsters off. The others are going to rush through the floors to join us. We just need to hold out till then!"

"Start chanting!" Ms. Tiona added as she angled her body. Falling faster, she leveled out once she was below Lefiya. At this point, they were nearing the halfway point of the shaft. "We'll handle the fireballs from here!"

"Got it!" Lefiya called out before beginning her chant. She could only hope that the three of them would be able to hold out until the others arrived.

Takemikazuchi

Take stared down at the letter. It had arrived only a few minutes ago, and it had rocked his world.

Takemikazuchi,

Only a few short nights ago, several villages in the Far East were set upon by the Great Black Dragon. The villages have been destroyed and hundreds killed, and it saddens me to report that Lady Tsukuyomi was among the casualties. The dragon has since disappeared and the rebuilding has begun. Many of the orphans who resided in your shrine survived, as has most of the shrine itself. Sadly, a great many newly made orphans have looked to your shrine to provide a refuge. Unfortunately, there is no longer a god to look after your shrine or the orphans. Lady Amaterasu is willing to allow it to remain, but only if you return to take charge. Otherwise, she will likely order the shrine to be abandoned and the orphans scattered. I am sorry, but there is not much time for you to make a decision. Please send word on what you wish to do as soon as you can.

My sympathies,

Lord Susanoo

Take had originally been a lower god in the noble court of the Far East which was ruled by Lady Amaterasu. He and Tsukuyomi had run a shrine that cared for many of the orphans in their corner of the Far East. In fact, they were one of only a small handful of orphanages in the entire country.

All the members of Take's Familia were orphans who had chose to come to Orario in order to make money which they would send back to the Far East in order to support the shrine. With Tsukuyomi dead and no god to take over besides himself, there was a very real chance that the shrine could be shut down. The problem was that they had no way to make enough money to support the shrine in the Far East. That was why Take had come to Orario in the first place.

Perhaps some of his members could stay here and continue in the Dungeon while he returned to the Far East? That might work for a time, but without him there, they would have no way to update their statuses and the Guild would eventually ban them from entry for not having a god in the city.

Take sighed. "I should speak to the others," he muttered to himself. "This is not a decision I can make alone."

A/N: Ushiwakamaru looks like Hakugen but red and orange instead of white and green.

I hope you like my explanation of enchanting. I wanted to give the various pieces of the table in Skyrim some utility, so I tried to have them make sense. Did it work? It wasn't boring, right?

I've been thinking about including more of the Sword Oratoria storyline but I'm not all that familiar with it. If you want to see more of it, let me know.

What did you think of the letter Take got?

Answers to questions:

On Ao3

Hulk9970: I will be adding more members to the Familia. Most of the ones I have planned are canon Danmachi characters, but much later on I am not against adding extras as background characters, similar to some of the Loki Familia members.

Bigtime12: Who knows which one she's talking about? Could be Ishtar, could be Hestia. Spoilers.